Playing With Fire
by badflower
Summary: Shannon Moore/OC fic other pairings Jeff Hardy/OC . When Shannon decides to hire one of the best artists in the business to complete his team as Gas Chamber Ink, he gets a lot more than he bargained for! *WARNING! STRONG SEXUAL CONTENT!*
1. Chapter 1 The new girl

'See now he's good and won't cost me the earth to keep on staff, but that's all he is; good. Look at his stuff. And then there's her, she's fucking unreal but she'll cost me. But the other upside is that she'll bring a hell of a lot of work to the shop, so technically I could afford her in the long run' said Shannon as he and Kerry, one of the guys employed by him at Gas Chamber Ink looked over resumes, trying to decide on who should get the last position to fill.

'You know what I'm gonna say, sorry man but I'm biased! Get Chloe, believe me she's worth her weight in gold, she's down to earth, she'd fit right in here' said Kerry, who had worked with the uber talented Chloe Daniels over at her current location Mad Ink three year ago. Since then she'd done a tour of guest spotting at studios across the US and two in England for some big names such as Kat Von D (even featuring on a few episodes of LA Ink) and Mr Cartoon in the states and Jason Butcher and Jo Harrison in the UK. She specialised in Japanese, biomechanical and portrait work, and after her recent tour other studios had decided to come home and work for Mad Ink so she could be close to her family and friends.

'Fuck it, she's hired' said Shannon after looking at a few more photographs of her work, and then at a picture of the lady herself.

'You ain't even gunna interview her?' asked Kerry, looking over his shoulder at the picture he held, a giant back piece of skulls and bones with such detail it looked like a photograph.

'Her work speaks for itself, and by the way you sing her praises she sounds like she's got the right attitude too. And she ain't hard on the eye either' he replied.

'Shame she's married huh?' chuckled Kerry as he watched Shannon eyeing her photograph.

'Not like I'd do anything about it even if she wasn't' he replied, in reference to his eight month relationship with his girlfriend Lauren.

'Yeah, okay boss' said Kerry in a tone of disbelief.

'I'm hiring her because she does work like this, even if she does so happen to look like that' said Shannon, holding up a picture of her work and then one of her. She looked kind of how Jessica Simpson would look if you mixed her with a biker girl. She had the top half of her hair blonde with the underside dyed dark red and then bright purple beneath that, and was covered in a canvass of tattoos. Hands, fingers, arms, chest, neck and a fair few more under her clothes too he wagered. And also she had gorgeous deep brown eyes, making her a lethal combination to him. Blonde, brown eyes, tattooed. He'd always considered heavily tattooed women to be very beautiful, but never encountered many in his home of Cameron.

'So can I call her and tell her she's in or do you wanna do it?' asked Kerry, hand hovering by the phone.

'Go for it bro, tell her she can start as soon as' replied Shannon, still looking at the picture. And so Kerry flipped out his phone and looked through for Chloe's number, feeling pleased his boss had chosen the right person for the job; even if he was biased.

'Honey I got it!! ARRRRRGH I'M SO FREAKIN' EXCITED!' shouted Chloe as she ran in from the kitchen where she'd been on the phone to Kerry. Her husband looked over the top of his book, smile fleetingly and then returned to it.

'Great, I'm pleased for you' he said meekly.

'Well gee, don't give yourself a stroke or anything' she muttered, feeling her heckles start to rise at what was no doubt about to come.

'Does it surprise you that much that I'm not exactly overjoyed at who you'll be spending every day with? I'm honestly pleased you got the job, but you know that while you're around him I'm not going to be ecstatic' replied Mike.

'You won't burn if you say his name you know' she said, sitting in the armchair opposite her husband.

'Okay, so I'm not going to be happy about you and Kerry spending so much time together. You know I've never liked him' he said, his voice sounding strained when he said Kerry's name.

'And in turn you aren't his favourite person either Michael, but a least he manages to be civil on the rare occasions you two are in the same room' replied Chloe. Her friend and husband had never got on, with Mike being extremely intimidated by the bald, heavily inked tattoo artist. Kerry just didn't like his attitude full stop. He thought he looked down his nose at Chloe, something which pissed him off no end.

'I don't want to discuss this any longer. You got the job, well done, there we go' he said, holding his hand up. She went to speak again and thought better of it, deciding silence would be the best thing she could bring to the conversation. And as she sat there, wishing her husband could get over himself for long enough to be genuinely pleased for her, she didn't know that her start at Gas Chamber Ink would spark a change of events to change her life drastically.

It started as soon as she met and got to know her new boss. Now she couldn't deny that occasionally she'd see a man who turned her head, but her new boss was something else. And with the current state of her home life, that wasn't hard right then.

Chloe didn't look away once from the tattoo she was doing as he sat and spoke to her, not even when she paused to wipe ink away and re load her needle. It made her feel slightly nervous; she hated it when a man had that effect on her.

'Why'd I have to get a boss who's pure eye candy? Oh well, good money and something nice to look at, a girl can't complain' she thought, finally tearing her eyes away from the Samoan mask she was etching onto the man in front of her and looking at her boss to answer the question he'd just asked her.

'Sixty hours, and yes the armpit was the worst! I'll take elbow bone any day over armpit!' She said, holding her arm up and showing him the underside of her sleeve.

'Ain't many women out there brave enough to go in for the painful places, so where was your worst then?' he then asked.

'Inside of my lip, that was a bitch' she said, going back to face and shading the eye sockets.

'Yeah I hear that' he said, pulling down his lip to show her the 'Extinct' tattoo there.

'I'll show you mine when I ain't all gloved up' she said, and once she had finished tattooing she did, along with a few more of her large collection.

'You a Pantera fan then?' he asked as he read 'Far Beyond Driven' tattooed across her inner lip.

'Yeah, and I like what it means to me. That's how I'd describe the way I am in everything I do, far beyond driven' she replied, opening the bottle of juice in her hand and taking a sip.

'You gotta lot of words and statements tattooed here and there haven't you?' he said, noticing the 'I've seen my fate' tattoo on her neck, 'Baby Doll' across her fingers, 'Elizabeth' on the back of her hand surrounding a scared heart, and 'SUCCEED' in big letters across her stomach, similar to his but all in black and shaded grey tones.

'I like to put words on myself that mean something to me, I dunno, it's like they enforce what I believe, like if I have them tattooed on me no one can take them from me' she said.

'I understand that, it's like making something you have inside a part of you on the outside huh' he said, watching Chloe nod.

'Oh yeah totally, and if you'll excuse me boss but a certain someone I ain't seen in ages just walked in and I gotta say hi!' she said, running down the shop and jumping on Kerry as soon as he arrived.

'I missed you asshole' she said affectionately, scratching his beard as he carried her back along the shop.

'I missed you too skank' he said, kissing her cheek and putting her down again.

'Very affectionate little pet names you got for each other there' laughed Shannon, just before Kerry started to quiz his old buddy on what she'd been up to since they last saw each other properly.

'So how did your little travel around work out for you then?' he asked, sitting down next to her as Shannon sat cross legged on the table in front of them.

'It was a good learning curve, good to get my name out there a little bit too. The UK was a trip; I swear I love it out there. No one gives a shit, they just get on with what they gotta do and that's it, real straight up people, damn good artists too. The girl I worked with in Birmingham, shit she was amazing! And I lived in this little village called Moseley with a houseful of punks, I almost didn't come home!' she said, eyes lighting up as she remembered her time there.

'I'm sure Mike would have had something to say about that' said Kerry, raising his eyebrows and laughing.

'Ahhhhh I'd have to take him with me I suppose, with the little thing of being married to the dude and all' she said, moving out of the way for Shannon to climb down from the table to answer his cell.

'So then young lady, did anyone finish off the geisha I started on your side?' he then asked.

'And sign my own death warrant? Hardly big dude, she's all yours' Chloe replied, pulling up her top and showing him the unfinished Japanese girl done in horror style. She knew Kerry would have killed her for getting someone else to finish the job he'd started. She then looked over to where Shannon was standing momentarily and watched his head snap back in the other direction. 'Was he just checking me out?' she wondered, lowering her top again and listening to what her old friend had to say.

'Well now you're working here I can get round to finishing it. If you can handle the pain of course' he said, beginning to laugh as she hit him.

'Shut the fuck up, as I was saying to the big boss man, I got armpit tattoos. You know that makes me hardcore' she said, flexing her arm muscles and laughing back.

'You know, if I didn't know him better I'd say the big boss man was wishing you weren't a taken lady about now' said Kerry, nodding towards where Shannon was standing, still on the phone but staring at Chloe.

'Okay so you really need to shut the fuck up about now, okay?' She said, pointing her finger into his cheek as she got up.

'I'm only doing it to make his life hell sweetie' he laughed, getting up and heading to the back of the shop to throw his jacket down. And little did Chloe know or could ever guess at that moment, in just six weeks time because of her new boss she would wish she wasn't taken.


	2. Chapter 2 Chloe Daniels

'Chloe Daniels, 33, was originally born and raised in Austin, Texas, but moved with her family to Cameron, North Carolina when she was ten. Showing a keen interest in art and tattoo culture from an early age she studied art and textiles at college before beginning her first apprenticeship at the now closed down Black Mass Tattoo just outside of her home town. She worked there for five years before moving to New York at 26 years old to work with Steve Schneider and Jimmy Koo at their coveted Arcadian studio for two years before heading home again to take up a position at old school friend Eddie Hamilton's 'Mad Ink' studio in Cameron. In 2007 she took a six month tour of the US and United Kingdom to work freelance with artists such as Kat Von D, Jason Butcher and Mr Cartoon but to name a few. The Beginning of 2008 sees her beginning a new chapter in her career working for WWE wrestler Shannon Moore at his Gas Chamber Ink studio. For all booking information please click the Gas Chamber Ink link in the contact section of the side.'

For the last two weeks Shannon hadn't been able to shake Chloe from his thoughts. All he could keep thinking over and over again is 'she's my perfect woman, and I can't have her. ARRRRRRRRRGGGGH!' and it was beginning to distract him. He'd find himself making up excuses to go into the shop just because she was there, spending a lot more time there than the usual of two full days and a mixture of afternoons and mornings the rest of the time, or sometimes not at all depending on his schedule. And when he wasn't there he'd still find himself immersing himself in all things Chloe; he'd become a frequent visitor to her website for one thing.

Clicking the back arrow on the browser the page re loaded to show a page full of images of her he couldn't resist viewing again. Pictures of her tattooing the likes of Bam Margera, Sid Wilson from Slipknot, Angela Gossow of Arch Enemy, Method Man and The Undertaker aka Mark Callaway to name a few. She had done the 'Sara' tattoo across his throat and work on his arms too, and there was a picture on her sit showing her working on him, and one of him hugging her afterward, making her look tiny in his huge embrace.  
He clicked the side of another picture to enlarge it, a professional shot of her and Kat Von D both standing in leather trousers and their bras showing off their ink, both about as covered in tattoos as the other.

'Fucking gorgeous, damn your husband's a lucky man' he muttered, hearing the sound of high heels on the floor coming towards where he was sat in the small room he kept his computer, musical equipment and anything associated with work in large files. He closed the page and called up the shop site just as Lauren walked in and slid her arms around his neck.

'Heya handsome' she said, kissing his cheek.

'Hey babe' he said, turning and pulling her face closer to his and kissing her lips, and then pulling her down across his lap and stroking her legs.

'Hmmmmm calm down tiger' she said, stroking his cheek and kissing his head.

'Calm down? It's been four days, how calm do you expect me to be?' he said, trying to undo her top.

'Sorry baby. I've just been tired' she said, pushing his hands away from where they tried to get into her top.

'Are you tired now?' he asked, feeling his dick starting to harden, hands slipping down to push up her skirt but being stopped again.

'No. But let's not do this now. Later, when we go to bed' she said, getting up and kissing his cheek before leaving.

'That's seven fucking hours' he muttered, looking down to where his erection was tenting his jeans and swearing to himself. He had no idea why since pretty much the second month into their relationship Lauren's sex drive had diminished to twice a week if he was lucky, but it was starting to frustrate him greatly. Noticing his new employee in the ways he did wasn't exactly helping matters either.

He'd find himself sitting and staring at her when she tattooed, watching the way she paid so much attention to what she did, the way her forehead seemed to crease in what he could only describe as a cute way when she concentrated, the way her brown eyes moved intently across the lines she was inking under skin, the way she ran her arm across her brow and stretched to reveal her stomach tattoo when she took a break. The way he was sure she had started to look at him. And without thinking, he found himself thinking up another reason to head back to work that evening.

Also, he felt like she was becoming a friend to him too. They'd find themselves talking at length on a regular basis, already she had presented herself as the kind of woman who was very easy to get along with, and also just wonderful company. She had a way of making you feel very special when she spoke to you, something he'd witnessed with people she was giving a tattoo to for the first time. They'd be shitting themselves and she'd be able keep them calm and easy throughout the whole sitting. She was just that kind of person.

'Sup dude' Chloe said as she watched Shannon enter the shop, taking the money from her last client and thanking her, handing her a card with the date and time of her next appointment on the back and saying goodbye.

'Hey mofo how's it goin'?' he asked, walking around the counter to where she had just sat down and taking a seat next to her.

'Good, I got an hour to twiddle my thumbs before the next client comes in but other than that all's good. So what brings you back down here then? I thought you were heading off to get Lauren?' she asked, checking her phone for messages.

'I was, but..............ahhh never mind, I just thought I'd come chill for a bit' he replied.

'Trouble in paradise?' she asked, putting her phone back in her bag.

'I wouldn't exactly refer to it as paradise to start with' he replied, scratching his stubbly chin.

'Ouch, that bad huh?' said Chloe.

'Well...............................yes and no' he said, looking thoughtful and chewing his cheek.

'Wanna talk to me about it?' she offered.

'Nah, ain't for you to worry about dude' he said, patting her knee and smiling.

'Sure?' she asked, pulling her cigarettes from her bag.

'Positive, you go top up your nicotine and ill keep watch out here' he said, jerking his thumb towards the back of the shop.

'Cool, okay' she said, getting up and walking out towards the back, circling around the corner past the bathroom and toward the end of the hall and pushing the bar down to open the fire door and let herself out. She'd been out there for less than twenty seconds before she felt a presence behind her and turned to see Shannon.

'Gimmie' he said, holding his hand out.

'You don't smoke' she said, raising an eyebrow at him.

'I used to, now don't hold out' he said, slowly smiling at her as she rolled her eyes and passed her cigarettes.

'Thanks' he said after lighting one and blowing the smoke down his nose, his blue eyes shining at her through the cloud. He looked even sexier when he smoked for some reason.

'I feel like a bad influence' she then said.

'You are' he shot back with a sly smile, not necessarily referring to the smoking.

'So who's looking after the shop if we're both out here?' she asked, watching him sit down in the doorway.

'No one, I locked up. You said your next appointment wasn't for an hour so fuck it' he shrugged, looking up at her and noticing he could see her bra through the side of her t shirt. He mentally scolded himself for it at once.

'Well you're the boss' she said, flicking the flint wheel on her lighter in her fingers nervously. The way she had started to look at him, she felt nervous being alone with him. His eyes completely mesmerized her, blue with a hint of green, and when he wore eyeliner it made her stomach flip with how gorgeous he looked, and he had the kind of body that should have carried some sort of warning it was so perfect, so huge and muscular. He was the kind of guy she really would have made a play for had she not been married.

But remarkably enough her husband was nothing like Shannon. He was tall with dark spiky hair and not anything even close to what could be considered a muscle, Mike had been her high school sweetheart she'd ended up marrying four years ago after meeting up with again when she'd arrived home from New York. She loved him, but if she was honest she'd married him thinking there was no one else out there for her. And now she was dealing with the repercussions of that decision; their love wasn't enough to carry a marriage between two people so mismatched. And one so paranoid over his wife's choice of friends.

She supposed it was habit that kept them together, but there were moments of genuine affection still in existence between the couple, though few and far between. Also it sometimes felt as if he resented the fact she had chased her dream and become all she'd ever wanted to be, whereas he'd pursued the family trade and become an accountant, with only one tattoo on his wrist and one body modification; a 10mm flesh tunnel in his ear Chloe had talked him into. They looked very much the odd couple, she was a little rock and roll girl and he was very plain.

But that aside, the differences she was starting to feel were based at the very core of their marriage. So thus it made it hard for her to spend time in the company of men like Shannon, i.e. men she was becoming quite attracted to. Ones she felt she was perhaps more suited to.

Also just as Lauren thought sex on twice weekly occasions was enough to sustain a healthy relationship, so did Mike. Or not at all as was often the case. And after many attempts of trying to inject some kind of spark into it, she was now left wondering why she was bothering at all, especially when she had to put up with comments like 'I find you less attractive the more tattoos you get. Stop while I can still see your face, please'. She did love him, he was a wonderful man in all other respects, but sex seemed to somehow make him shrink from her rather than get closer, like he was almost scared of it somehow.

And so she stood out there just casually chatting with her new boss, and had to stop the images flashing through her mind. She kept imagining him all over her, his mouth and tongue travelling across her flesh, his hands pawing at her body, the way he would feel pressed to her. She needed someone like him, needed reminding what a real man was. For she wasn't sure anymore with the model she had for reference back home.


	3. Chapter 3 Trouble

'I think I'm in trouble' confessed Chloe as she sat opposite the table from her best friend Alice, who dealt the cards and poured more Jack into their glasses. She knew whenever she had a problem, Alice would be there. She was her oracle. The duo had become friends after Chloe began frequenting the bar Alice worked in when she was a teenager.

She knew Chloe was two years under the legal age but let her in anyway and gave her the sly beer here and there when the manager was out. They'd been firm friends ever since, and the weathered but still attractive Alice was like a best friend and a big sister rolled into one for Chloe, even though at fifty she was just about old enough to be her mother.

'Spill sista, what's on your mind?' said Alice in her gravelly voice, taking the unlit cigarette from the corner of her mouth and lighting it off a candle.

'My boss, my boss's arms, his face, his mouth, his chest. My boss naked mostly though' said Chloe, picking up her cards and throwing three out.

'You haven't!' Alice exclaimed.

'NO! But man, if I was single, fuck the job I would have!' she laughed, throwing down another card and then picking two up after Alice's turn.

'Hell, if I was ten year's younger darlin' she said, whistling and sucking a long breath in through her teeth. 'He sure is handsome, how the hell you get any work done with that walking around all day I'll never know' she continued.

'It's getting more difficult, believe me' she said, once again having his face pop into her head. She couldn't believe after only two weeks she was becoming so attracted to him she could hardly concentrate, but he was the kind of man who made a girl want to forget her marriage vows.

'So, does this fancy have anything to do with your current situation with Mike?' asked Alice, throwing down two cards and closely studying the rest, raking a hand through her short red hair.

'You mean am I looking at other men because I'm sexually frustrated? Yeah I guess that's fair enough to say, but with him, damn I'd look anyway' she confessed with a small laugh.

'So what are you gunna do? I mean you wouldn't be telling any of this to me unless you'd considered sleeping with him' said Alice, watching her younger friend pick up her drink and pull a thoughtful face, then look at her as much to say 'yeah, you got me'.

'Okay so yes, I have. Then I see him with his girlfriend or Mike comes to pick me up and I remember why we're just friends' replied Chloe, taking another swig of her drink.

'Sounds like the lyrics from a song by that band My Ruin I like. It goes 'Close your eyes, and let's pretend, remember why, we're just friends'. It's off a good album actually, I'll find it for you before you go' she said, balancing her cigarette on her lip as she viewed her cards. Close your eyes and let's pretend, it sounded like something she had started to do whenever the opportunity to daydream had presented itself. Her thoughts about her boss had gone from the occasional noting of his attractiveness, to all out fantasies of sexual exploits she craved to do with him, to him, the things she wanted him to do to her also.

'Sometimes I do wonder though' said Alice suddenly, shaking Chloe from her thoughts.

'Wonder what?' she said, pouring another drink after putting her cards down.

'Wonder why you married someone like Mike and not Shannon. He's so much more your type, and last week when he ran you to see me at the bar to fetch your stuff someone assumed you two were together. You look like you should be with someone like him, he's more...................................you. He's funny too, and just a real upbeat guy in general' said Alice. She never failed to shock her with her frankness on situations.

'Yeah but I love Mike, we might be like chalk and cheese but I do really love him. Even for all his faults' she replied, lighting a cigarette.

'Love him enough to deal with the fact he's the sexual equivalent of a sloth?' said Alice, looking over her cards comically at Chloe, who could only shake her head and laugh.

'He'll get there, he just needs to loosen up a bit' she said after she'd composed herself, tucking a blonde curl behind her ear and playing her cards.

'You need to stick that vibrator you brought the other day up his ass for that to happen' she said, making Chloe reach out and slap her arm.

'Enough! I wish I hadn't of said anything now' she exclaimed, holding her hands at the side of her head and exhaling deeply. Meanwhile the target of her deepest and darkest desires was also wishing he hadn't of said anything on the same subject.

'So that's why you hired her then' said Jeff, laughing and dodging a slap as he sat outside his home with Shannon, fussing his wife's huge black, grey and white Husky Odin whilst listening to her whistling in the kitchen.

'No! I might have known you'd say some shit like that Hardy. Seriously it's fucking killing me dude, she's like.............................perfect. And married, and I got Lauren and it's all just.........................oh god why me?' he said, making his friend laugh even harder.

'Because it always happens to you reject, it's been like that since you were a kid man, always in at the sticky end' said Jeff, laughing through his nose.

'Yup. This isn't good' he said, removing his cap and scratching his head, replacing it backwards once he was done.

'Ain't looking good for Lauren, that's for sure' he said, watching Shannon pull a thoughtful face.

'Mmmm' he murmured.

'Well from what you've told me about your woman, and mine and everyone else's general opinion on her it sounds like you're onto nothing but a dead horse there anyway. If I were you I wouldn't stay around and try to flog some life into it, but also don't go running after someone's wife. Bad idea, especially when she's someone who just so happens to work for you' said Jeff, pushing Odin down and making him sit when he tried to jump on his lap, something he'd been too big for since a growth spurt taking him from puppy well and truly into dog three months ago.

'Do you all really hate her that much?' he asked, in reference to Lauren.

'No we don't hate her, she's just got nothing going for her and to be honest I can't think of a single way she makes you happy. Maybe if she was actually letting you tap her that'd be different, but how many days has it been now?' Jeff asked.

'A week tomorrow' said Shannon, wincing.

'Ouch, dude sort it out for fuck sake!' said Jeff, laughing. 'I mean apart from that are you really that thrilled to be with her?' he then asked.

'Well............................' he replied before shrugging.

'See, you shrugged. If she made you that happy that shrug wouldn't have happened' he said, pointing a finger in the side of his friends' head, who dodged it, and leant forward to steal one of his cigarettes.

'And you're smoking again, must be bad' Jeff then noted.

'This ain't got shit to do with Lauren, this is Chloe specific. She's getting into my head, what the fuck do I do about it? C'mon man you're like my oracle, help a dude out here' he said, gesturing at himself with his hands. Since he was a kid he's always looked up to Jeff, and valued his opinion above most peoples. Just like Chloe had her oracle, he had his.

'Honestly, stop it. Keep your eyes off her and keep your dick in your pants man. Otherwise you'll find shit going horribly wrong that I can guarantee.

'What's going to go horribly wrong?' came the voice of his wife Claire coming out onto the high decking at the back of their house.

'Shannon's life if he messes with married ladies' he replied, welcoming his lady onto his lap and curling his arms around her body, hand stroking her long red hair.

'Still got your beady eye on Chloe then huh bud?' she asked, reaching forward and fluffing his hair.

'However did you guess?' he said sarcastically, sighing.

'Dangerous ground my friend, very dangerous ground' she said, taking a cigarette and shifting in Jeff's lap.

'Stop wiggling or we're gunna end up with a situation I don't wanna have to explain to him, not in his state the poor guy' said Jeff, holding her still.

'It's not my fault you're over sensitive' she replied, lighting up.

'You're bouncing around all over my dick woman what the hell do you expect?' he said, exasperated as Shannon laughed and Claire just turned and kissed his cheek.

'Shut up' she whispered, giving his cheek a little nibble before turning her attention back to Shannon.  
'So whatcha gunna do then?' she asked, straight up as ever.

'Well I can't fire her' he began, laughing softly. 'Try not to notice how much of a total fox she is I guess' he continued, flicking his cigarette off somewhere into the long grass. Jeff and Claire just exchanged looks as if to say 'yeah, like that's gunna happen'. And of course they were right, especially when Shannon stayed back the following night to watch Kerry working on Chloe's geisha, which was just a few sittings away from being completed.  
Just sitting there watching her looking so calm while having such a sensitive part of her body stencilled with a tattoo needle was a turn on in itself to Shannon, something about the way she could take pain just made her that much more attractive, just like casting his eyes over her ornately decorated flesh did.

He couldn't stop thinking about peeling her clothes off and counting each tattoo he found underneath it, couldn't stop imagining how the tattoos on his body would look merged with the ones on hers in a naked embrace, couldn't stop thinking about how she might look when he was fucking her. And he imagined doing just that so many times a day it was driving him to distraction, and when Lauren had finally decided to let him have his way with her he'd been so fuelled full of pent up sexual frustration she could hardly move after he'd let it all out on her. But the one person he really wanted to let it all out on was the one sat in the chair next to him, and the one through his daydreaming was trying to attract his attention.

'YO! Ground control to Major Tom! Come back Shannon, come back!' She shouted, clicking two fingers in his ear.

'Sorry, what you say Clo?' he said, shaking himself from his daze.

'Kerry's gotta run, his wife's got a spider emergency apparently' laughed Chloe.

'Not all women are brave enough to pick up the little fuckers like you are' said Kerry, sticking down a sheet of cling film to her freshly inked side and taping the sides down. 'Anyway that's you all signed and sealed, see you in the morning folks' said Kerry, picking up his jacket and heading for the door.

'Nite man' said Shannon, standing up and stretching as Chloe began to clear away the inks back into the cupboard. Once she was done she turned and headed back into the staff room to collect her bag, and walked back out front with it and two glasses.

'After that, and the frightfully busy day we've had I think whisky is in order. Care to join me?' she said, holding the open neck of a bottle of Jim Beam black over the other glass not filled.

'Yeah alright then, fuck it I'll leave my car here. I ain't got a whole lot to do tonight anyway' he replied, knocking out the main light and just switching on a couple of lamps around the studio, sitting down behind the counter next to her and taking the glass she offered. It was about to become one of those nights where both would learn a few interesting revelations about the other.


	4. Chapter 4 The whisky made me say it

'So it's a Friday night and you're sat here with me, what's up with that? No out partying with your girl tonight?' she asked, sipping a glass of the whisky she'd ran out on her break to go and buy, knowing she'd need one after her date with the needle.

'She's out with her girly friends, I only end up getting in the way' he said with a little half smile. 'How about you then? Not out with your husband?' he then asked.

'He's working late, seems to be the only thing he does these days so I'm used to it. Fridays are usually my Ben and Alice days anyway, except for tonight since he's being tortured into decorating his new apartment with his woman' she said, remembering the pain in Ben's voice as he'd told her over the phone 'I can't come out to play tonight, she's got me painting the damn hallway'.

'So who are Ben and Alice?' he asked. 'They must be pretty damn special, I think I can just about make out there names somewhere in there, awwww and the big dude's too' he then said, leaning forward to look at her arm where there was a scroll with 'Ben, Alice, Kerry' tattooed onto it. 'I had no idea you and Kerry were that close' he added, then shut up realizing he wasn't leaving her any room to answer.

'Ben and Alice are two of my three best friends. And yeah I'm close with the number one asshole, about as close as I can be given his and Mike's feelings towards each other' she said, raising her eyebrows.

'Not good I take it then?' he asked, noting the way her face had changed.

'Mike's easily intimidated, and let's just say that my friendship with Kerry has always made him feel uneasy. Knowing he'd snap his neck in a heartbeat if he ever did me wrong is the thing that annoys him the most though. Oh and he's paranoid that I'm gunna run off with him, so for the last couple of years I haven't been able to spend as much time as I'd wanna with him' Chloe replied, taking another sip of her drink.

'So I bet he's pleased as punch you're working with him every day now huh?' said Shannon sarcastically.

'He was less than thrilled with the idea' she replied. 'I'm going out for a smoke, back in a flash' she followed with, picking up her cigarettes.

'Nah fuck it smoke in here, we're closed so it's cool' he said, throwing over a lid off a large tin containing piercing jewellery to use as an ashtray.

'Sure?' she asked, and then smiled when she watched him steal one for himself.

'Positive' he replied, lighting up and handing her lighter back to her. She lit up and topped up both glasses of Jim Beam, and just spent a few moments looking at him silently while she pretended to read something on the side of the whisky bottle.

'I didn't know manufacturers notes where so fascinating' he said, watching her reading the label and then laughing a little when she jumped at the sound of his voice, cutting through the usual thoughts of him that had begun to rattle through her head once more. She didn't really know how to answer that, there was definite amusement in his voice, was he just being sarcastic again or had he noticed her looking at him?

'And now she's on mute' he said, eyes fixing on hers and pulling a funny face to make her laugh. Still she didn't say anything.

'TAXI FOR SHANNON MOORE!' he shouted, holding his hand in the air and making her really laugh hard.

'You're funny' she said eventually.

'So are people who read the information on whisky bottles' he said, rolling his eyes playfully.

'So then boss man, are you happy with my first three weeks here?' she decided to ask.

'Absolutely, you're a damn good artist. It's why I hired you in the first place' he said, taking a drag on his cigarette and still managing to look impossibly sexy as he did it. 'Although with what you just told me about your old man I'm kinda worried I might end up losing you if he can't deal with the fact Kerry is around you most days' he then added.

'It isn't Kerry he has to worry about' she thought, rolling her tongue around in her mouth while her mind formulated the words she would say out loud instead. 'You have nothing to worry about, he knows he can't tell me where I can and cannot work' she finally said.

'You're forceful, I like that' he said, flicking his ash into the makeshift ashtray.

'Sometimes' she said, wishing she could be forceful enough to somehow overpower her husband into having a decent sex life right at that moment in their marriage. Three weeks was way too long for a married couple to go without conjugal rights in her opinion. Not really wanting to talk about Mike anymore she swiftly changed the subject, asking him about the shop and how he coped with it as well as travelling to pursue his number one career of choice; professional wrestling.

She didn't know much about it, or pretend to other than what they did in the ring got them hurt, but it wasn't real. And by the time he'd finished answering questions about his wrestling Chloe felt like she knew as much as she could ever absorb, before the subject changed once again and got back onto their shared passion, tattoos.

'So c'mon then, explain some of these to me' he said, leaning forward and pressing his finger into the side of her neck where the ornately tattooed words 'I've seen my fate' were. The contact made her skin tingle, a pleasant feeling run down her neck into her chest.

'That one is a reminder to me every day that I have to keep on going, keep doing what I love and getting better at it because it's my fate to be a tattoo artist. Okay onto another, Elizabeth was my grandmother and she always called me baby doll, she died four years ago so I did those myself on the day we buried her. Okay moving on, I have Succeed on my stomach for obvious reasons, I wanna succeed in life. And then down my spine I have the seven deadly sins, because I'm guilty of just about all of them!' she said, standing up and pulling her vest up to show him her back.

'Man that's some detailed shit. Pardon me for sounding so fucking rude but take your top off, I wanna look at the rest' he said. Chloe blushed for a moment and slid her grey vest up over her shoulders and head, leaving it resting on her arms as he began to study her back, which was totally covered.

'Shiiiiiiiiiiiiit the Ouija board is sick as fuck girl! Wow!' he said, looking at the impossibly lifelike looking tattoo that stretched across her shoulders. 'I'm surprised Kerry goes anywhere near you with that tattooed all over you' he continued.

'Kat did that one for me, it's one of my favourites' she said, looking over her shoulder and down to where his eyes were travelling her flesh.

'And if it was mine to say, I wouldn't say it. And if it was mine to say, I wouldn't speak' he said, reading the text going across the bottom of her back underneath a collection of roses, shooting stars, two crossed pistols and a hell of a lot of shading.

'Lyrics to 'Rickets' by Deftones. It reminds me that sometimes I should just shut the fuck up, that sometimes not saying something is the better option than letting my mouth run away with me!' she laughed, a laugh that was cut short as she felt his fingertips on her side, making her breath catch in her throat.

'I think Jeff's wife should consider that as her next one!' he laughed, pulling away from looking at the amazing work on her back and letting her adjust her top before she sat down again, playfully slapping his arm when he stole one of her cigarettes again.

'Why? Is she about as opinionated as me?' asked Chloe, taking a sip of her drink.

'Ooooooh yeah, if she's got something on her mind she just goes right ahead and says it. Claire don't give a shit if you don't like what she's got to hear, she's the most straight up person I've ever met. She certainly keeps old Nero on his toes!' said Shannon, laughing as he thought of who he lovingly referred to as 'that crazy Londoner'.

'She sounds like the kinda girl I'd get on with' she replied, deciding to have a cigarette herself and noticing she only had five left.

'Well, from what I know of you, and that ain't much yet, I'd say yeah. You both have about three tons of excess attitude and seem to let your husbands' know who wears the trousers, even if Jeff is too pussy to admit she scares the shit outta him!' he laughed, thanking her when she re filed his drink.

'I don't have excess attitude!' she said in her defence.

'It's a good thing! I can't stand women who just sink into the background and don't say shit, don't have an opinion, annoys me. And makes me wonder what I'm doing with Lauren sometimes' he said, not really meaning the last part to come out loud. As usual, alcohol had begun to loosen his words slightly.

'I refer back to my trouble in paradise comment a few days ago here' she said, raising her eyebrows and giving him a kind smile.

'I refer back to my original answer' he said simply.

'What? That it wasn't paradise to begin with or that you don't wanna talk about it?' she asked.

'You got a damn good memory girl. And as for not wanting to talk about it, well.................................It isn't the kind of thing a boss should have to bother his employee about' he said, looking a little pained.

'I'd like to think I might be your friend as well as just someone who works for you' she answered, another pretty smile across her face. It was all he could do at that moment not to reach out and stroke her cheek. It had been a while since a woman had smiled at him like that, and he missed it.

'So you'd be cool to hear about the fact that I'm going crazy because she only let's me have sex with her twice a week, three times if I'm lucky? That ain't too much?' he asked.

'Nope, I'd wanna know what the fuck her problem is though' she said. It was then her turn to internally whack her hand straight to her head for saying something out loud she perhaps shouldn't have. Shannon just laughed modestly, scratching the back of his neck and looking a little uncomfortable for a few moments.

'She thinks I'm the one with a problem, says I want sex too much. Damn, is it really my fault that I happen to find her attractive and wanna show her that on a daily basis?' he exclaimed, raising his hands and then dropping them into his lap with a thump. 'I mean what would you do if you were in that situation with Mike?' he then asked.

'Truth?' she asked.

'Shoot' he replied, sinking the rest of his drink and helping himself to another, noticing they were just over half way down the bottle. No wonder his tongue had loosened.

'I am' she replied, blowing a cloud of smoke down through her nose.

'Seriously? Now that is hard to believe' he said, rubbing a hand across his chin.

'Sad but true. Doesn't do your hormones any good does it?' she then said.

'Hell fucking no! I had to wait a week until two days ago, a fucking week! Damn I could have died!' he exclaimed.

'Try three' she shot back.

'THREE FUCKING WEEKS! DUDE!' He shouted, really hardly able to believe her husband could sleep in the same bed as her and not completely devour her body every single night. He sure as hell would have if she was his, and then came the thoughts about doing just that, thoughts he knew he shouldn't be having.

'Yeah I know, but what do you do? He doesn't give me any explanations other than he's tired, or the classic of he finds me less attractive now I have more tattoos, which kills me since I was covered in them when I married him!' she replied, running a hand through her tri-coloured hair.

'He said that? Is the moron fucking blind or something? Sorry, that didn't mean to come out as nastily as it sounded. I shouldn't judge your guy without even meeting him, but hell, what the fuck is his problem?' he said, shaking his head.

'Judge all you like, whatever you might say would probably be a fair assumption' she confessed.

'Okay the dudes crazy, blind and, crazy! There's no other explanation for it! Has it always been like that?' he said, holding her gaze.

'Not always, just since we got married and I got more tattoos it would seem. How about Lauren?' she asked, having to look away. Sometimes she just couldn't look him in the eye for too long, it made things seem dangerous with everything she had going on in her head.

'Oh she couldn't get enough of me for about eight weeks, and then it just kinda stopped. I ain't even gunna embarrass myself by telling you the last time she gave me head' he said, laughing through his nose.

'I could embarrass myself so much more here. Mike refuses to go down on me, he hates it' replied Chloe, watching Shannon nearly choke on his drink.

'HE WHAT? HE...........................WHAT?' he roared, eyebrows rising so high they virtually threatened to jump off the top of his head. 'He don't go down on you? What the fuck? Now that, THAT I do not get at fucking all! Damn girl if you were my wife I'd be down there so much you'd fucking forget what I looked like!' he said, then once again mentally slapped himself.

'Oh really?' she said, leaning forward in her chair closer to him, pulling a comical face and feeling the alcohol getting the better of her

'Really' he said, completely seriously as he also leaned close to her. And right there and then the energy between them seemed to crackle so fiercely she was sure she could actually hear the sparks of high voltage firing off the air between them. And if she didn't pull away quickly, she was going to be dragged under. She knew the look he was giving her, it was saying 'I'll fucking do it to you, and you know how much I wanna' so loud and clear she could feel herself blush, and realized she'd stopped breathing. But trying to back away from him, from the intense stare he held her in, the smell of him intoxicating her senses to the point of being blind to anything but him, she just couldn't do it. Until her phone began to ring and snapped them both out of it and firmly back to reality.

'Speak of the devil' she said quietly before answering her phone to Mike. Shannon just nodded while he tried to take stock of what had just happened there, that he'd been a nanosecond from literally launching himself at her and pulling her to the floor to show her what she'd been missing for the last three years of her marriage.

'Okay, yeah yeah just working late is all...........................umhm yeah okay hon meet me out front in about twenty minutes.................love you too bye' she said, hanging up her phone and stashing it away in her bag again.

'Mike, he's coming to get me in....' was all Chloe could manage before she was cut up.

'Yeah twenty minutes, I heard. I'll wait with you until he gets here' he said, pulling his cell from his pocket to retrieve the text message he'd just got.

'Do you wanna ride home?' she asked, standing on slightly shaky whisky legs and throwing her bag over her shoulder.

'Nah, seems someone wants me in the way after all. Lauren just text me, I've been summoned' he said, raising his eyebrows and flipping his phone shut again. And so they locked up and stood outside waiting for Mike to fetch Chloe, the atmosphere definitely different between them after what had happened back in the shop. And it would continue to grow as the two contemplated that moment between them, no matter how brief it was. Something was there.


	5. Chapter 5 Stress

'BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEN!' Shouted Chloe as she hurtled through his front door the next morning, somehow managing to kiss his other half Gemma on the cheek on her way past.

'Honey there's a Chloe in full flow shout apparently' said Gemma as she walked into the lounge where Chloe was hugging her other half.

'Okay, so we got a stress fit measuring about 7.5 on the Chloe scale. What gives?' he asked, sitting down and prising his friend and her strong grip off and down onto the couch next to him.

'And would coffee help? I have a pot on I can get you a cup right now before I leave for work' said Gemma lightly, trying to look serious through amusement at her friends state. She could convey her mood perfectly in one word sometimes, and had summed it up perfectly by the high pitched scream of 'Ben'.

'I know it's bad, really bad, but can you put a shot of Jack in it?' said Chloe, lighting a cigarette and inhaling deeply.

'I only have Hennessey' replied Gemma.

'That'll do girl' Chloe shot back. Gemma nodded and got up to prepare the flustered looking lady on the couch a drink, leaving her other half to offer his ear on whatever predicament had spurred the 9am, and quite frankly high pitched visit.

'So c'mon, you were talking way too fast on the phone for me to even try and figure out what the hell you were on about' said Ben.

'Last night, I.........................I....................I.................I don't know what it was, but something almost happened with Shannon. It was one of those 'you look at each other for way too long and not a words said between' you moments. You know what I mean? If Mike hadn't have called me when he did.......................well let's just say it was intense' she said, running her hands through her hair and resting her hands on the back of her neck. She looked tired.

'Okay so where the hell has this all come from? You erm, you didn't mention, and.....................okay I think Ben needs to be filled in on a few of the finer details wouldn't you say?' he said, holding his hands out in expression.

'I think, no, I know. I'm attracted to him, Shannon that is. So much so it's actually really starting to bother me. Coupled with the fact Mike and I, well, you know the score there. Just when I thought I could keep a lid on it he goes and makes it look like he might just think the same' she replied quickly but clearly, hands waving around in her usual fashion, touching her face every so often.

'So what you're saying to me is that you're tempted? That old deadly sin of lust etched on your back playing you up huh? Not surprising given the state of things at home I have to say' said Ben, tapping the region on her back where the tattoo was.

'Yes, and yes. Really fucking tempted. Because lord knows I've tried and tried with Mike to forge some kind of a decent sex life but hell, it just goes one in ear and out the other. If I didn't know him better I'd say he was playing away, but with a libido as nonexistent as his I can hardly see the gain in having two women to nag him into sex when he only has to put up with one' said Chloe, taking the coffee Gemma had just walked in with.

'I heard a little of it from the kitchen. Three words babe, frying pan and fire. Call me later at work okay?' she said, bending to kiss Chloe's head before bidding Ben goodbye and leaving to battle her way through the traffic to work.

'You know something honey, everyone's waiting for the day you turn around and tell us it's all over with Mike you know. But you shouldn't do it just because you wanna sleep with someone else. You don't need me to tell you that do you? I take it that's all it is? Just a physical attraction?' he asked, watching her take a few careful sips of her drink before answering.

'Oh god yeah, I mean he seems a nice guy but I don't know him well enough to fall for him. He's just an outlet for daydreaming, well he was until last night' she replied, resting her hand against her cheek and looking out of the window at the rain.

'So tell me what happened last night then' he urged, leaning around to attract her eye contact and smiling when she looked at him. Ben had the kind of smile that could set the jitteriest of people at ease, and just for looking at him she felt much calmer than the slight frenzy she'd arrived in.

'We both stayed late at the shop drinking whisky, and well, revelations were made on both sides' she began, before launching into a near word perfect rendition of the conversation that had taken place at work at around 9.50pm the previous night.

'Well one thing can be established here. The man wants to go down on you' said Ben, suddenly bursting into laughter and having to endure a slap from his friend. 'Ouch that stung!' he exclaimed as her hand made contact with his thigh.

'It's not funny dude! I'm in a situation here!' she said, pointing herself with wide eyes.

'You're only in a situation if you put yourself into one. Admire your boss from afar and sort things with Mike, or decide to cut your losses and leave if that's what you wanna do. I know you've mentioned it a couple of times, but really, don't mess around. You ain't a stupid girl so don't start thinking like one' he said, giving her shoulder a squeeze.

'Yeah, you're right. If my marriage isn't working, sleeping with someone else ain't gunna make it magically fix itself again. Don't worry, as you men say I'm sure I'll be able to keep it in my pants' she said, laughing. She wondered what she'd been worrying about. After all he was just a guy, he happened to be very hot this was true, but he was only a man after all. With Ben's words in her head for the rest of the day after she left, she decided to go and pay a visit to Mike at work. When they'd first married it was something she did on a daily basis until his sex drive took a nose dive never to turn back to the sky again it would seem.

'Hey Henry' she said to the doorman at the building Mike's office resided in.

'Afternoon Mrs Daniels' he said, holding the door open for her and smiling warmly.

'Thank you' she said, entering the building and trying not to slip on the polished floor as she walked down the hallway towards office 4D. She knocked the door and heard a muffled 'yeah?' from the other side.

'Hey you' she said, sliding around the door and shutting it with her back, reaching around to lock it.

'Are you not at work today?' he asked, looking up from his desk and smiling.

'I'm doing 3 till 9, so I thought I'd come and give my man a visit. I missed him' she said, moving between him and the desk to sit on his lap.

'You only saw me five hours ago' he said, shifting in his seat slightly and putting his arms around her.

'I meant I missed you in other ways' she said, starting to slide her hands over his chest through the light blue shirt he wore.

'Chloe, not here' he protested, pushing her hands away and giving her a pained smile.

'Well when then Mike? And where?' she said, suddenly losing her cool a little.

'Not here that's for sure. We'll talk about this later' he said dismissively but not harshly.

'Babe, all we ever do is talk' she said, still a little irate.

'That's not true and you know it isn't. That's an unfair assumption to make' he replied, running a hand down his face.

'How? It's true all we ever do is talk, talk, talk! The fucking talking has replaced the fucking in our relationship! So sit and think on that, maybe even talk to yourself about it Mike, I'm outta here' she said, going to wrench the door open and realizing she'd locked it, huffing and turning the latch and letting herself out without even closing the door behind her; she knew it pissed him off. She decided to go into work early rather than go home and stew about it. But that in itself presented another problem to her, it would be the first time she'd seen Shannon since their slightly awkward moment the previous night and there was a part of her not looking forward to it.

As predicted, her heart began to hammer in her chest with nerves and excitement as she neared the shop. Looking through the glass she couldn't see him there, and so walked in and said a quick 'Hey' to everyone on her way through to the back to dump her bag. Just as she turned to leave the room, there he was.

'Man you look pissed! Parking ticket?' he asked.

'Nope'

'PMS?'

'Nope'

'Fuck off Shannon it's none of your business?' he then ventured. She just looked at the floor. The very thing she wanted to feel from her husband was what she was feeling right now standing about a foot away from her boss. But the difference was Shannon wasn't even touching her and he made her heart beat so quickly she could hear the blood pumping in her ears and feel her mouth go a little dry.

'Is there anything I can do to at least make you break that face?' he then asked after a long silence. Still nothing.

'Fuck it; do you want me to go down on you? I'm prepared to do that shit if it cheers you up!' he said, really hoping it would make her laugh, and possibly cut out any tension from last night when they'd both had a little bit too much to drink. It worked; she had begun to snicker into her hand, and then laughed really loudly.

'You animal' she said finally.

'I made you laugh though' he said. She just looked up at him and shrugged, glad he'd been able to say something about it and make it funny rather than uncomfortable. And so Chloe thought it was done with, and no matter what had just evolved in her husband's office just tried to get on with her job without intrusive sexual thoughts about a man who wasn't the one she shared surnames with. But he wasn't about to make it easy for her, because after that initial interaction he just couldn't help himself but find very subtle, but at the same time strong ways to flirt with her.

Like when she was leaning over the counter later that day talking to a girl who was considering her first tattoo and she had suddenly felt someone literally underneath her.

'Hello down there' she said, looking down under her folded arms to see Shannon opening the case to pull out a tray of piercing jewellery.

'From that row on is the 4-5mm stuff' he said, pointing at the tray as he spoke to the guy who had asked for it. He then began to stand up through the gap between her body and folded arms, sliding out to the side and letting her rest back down again as he stood next to her, with one leg behind hers, like he was pinning her there. The feeling of a muscular leg pressing against hers was making her heartbeat soar again; mixed with that and the fact she could smell him too. She wasn't sure what it was he wore, but it smelt good. But yet could these little things really be portrayed as flirting? In the coming fourteen days she would get her answer, and a whole lot more.


	6. Chapter 6 He wants me

'No matter how used to this I may be, shit it still stings like a bitch!' Claire grimaced as she sat back in the chair while Chloe worked on her leg.

'Wimp' teased Jeff, who was sat right next to her.

'Fuck you' she replied, raising her middle finger at her husband.

'You will be later, that you can count on my darlin' he replied, making her shake her head and just chuckle, reaching out to stroke his face. He grabbed her hand and kissed her palm, mouthing 'I love you so much' at her through a huge smile. And as Chloe sat and worked on the tattoo of a pin up girl riding a monkey wrench onto Claire's leg she sighed, wishing that her marriage was in the same league as theirs. They were so happy together it just couldn't be hidden, the joy they shared at sharing each and every day with one another since their whirlwind marriage four years go.

Claire had met Jeff when she was just twenty three in a club in London when he had been on tour with the WWE, and earlier in the day before he arrived she had explained how she had wound up becoming Mrs Hardy within six months of meeting him.

'I know it's the biggest cliché in the book, but I just knew from that first night I was destined to be with him. The connection we both had was just too strong to deny or fight, and after he left the UK we stayed in touch and were just friends at first, until two months later when I came out here first to visit him. We definitely weren't just friends after that! I don't actually think I left Jeff's bedroom at all for the first three days I was here, and then after I went home again a week later I was just so fucking miserable without him my best friend sat me down and just said 'go to him! You're in love with the man, don't let a big stretch of ocean come between you', and I didn't. We got married exactly six months after we first met and I just wouldn't be without him now. He's like my best friend and my husband rolled into one' she had said, eyes sparkling as she looked down at her wedding ring with pride.

It was the same way Chloe used to look at her own wedding band, but now viewing the thin piece of gold around her finger only made her feel hopelessness at the state of her marriage, with a husband who seemingly believed there was nothing wrong, and that she was the one with 'self control issues' as he had worded it. She thought it was his self control issues that were causing the problem and yelled it at him at high volume, the problem being he had way too much damn self control. It was now a month, and she was still 'sleeping on dry sheets' as Alice had so wonderfully worded it. And the frustration Chloe felt towards this was made no easier by the fact her boss still found ways to flirt with her on a daily basis.

It was enough to make her want to dive on him at times, just standing next to him and breathing in his scent did intoxicating things to her head, the allure of him acting like a vice like grip around her, making the temptation just to give in and drag him away to tear all his clothes off extremely hard to fight. But she did fight it somehow, bombarding herself with thoughts of love for Mike, or finding other ways to become distracted from him. Right at that moment Claire was her distraction, even though the person of the receiving end of her sharp tongue was something to do with Shannon as Lauren had just walked in.

'Look Jeff, it's escaped!' she whispered, pointing over to the door Lauren was letting herself through.

'Don't start' he said, laughing into his hand.

'Why? It's fun! She hates me and I hate her' replied Claire with a shrug, looking over at Shannon's girlfriend again and muttering 'toxy' under her breath, making Jeff roar.

'Okay so what does toxy mean?' asked Chloe as she taped down cling film wrap to Claire's finished leg.

'Poison midget' she replied, making Chloe snort loudly and begin laughing along with Jeff. It was a name she had heard from a friend when she was at college, and had never forgot to use it against anyone she didn't like of diminutive stature.

'Is she really that bad?' she then enquired.

'She's worse. Always on his case about something, yet when you ask the woman for an opinion of anything real, say current affairs or the like she just sits and looks at you like someone's removed her brain. Sorry, single cell that should be, thick bitch. And she's over emotional! It's like she's in a constant state of PMT with how she flies off the handle at the smallest things!' said Claire, rearranging her jeans carefully over her freshly tattooed leg and moving herself out of the chair to sit on Jeff's lap. 'He knows no one likes her, I think he's only with her because he doesn't wanna be on his own' she then added, leaning back with her head rested against her husband's.

'Up to him isn't it?' Chloe said, cleaning up her booth and preparing for her next client in twenty minutes time.

'Yeah, poor things already met the woman he wants, he just can't have her though' said Claire, feeling Jeff dig his thumb into her ribs and give her a 'shut the fuck up!' look.

'Ahhh right, shame that' said Chloe briskly, letting herself out of the booth and walking across to where G was standing to get the design she had to put on her next subject.

'You and your fucking mouth woman' Jeff muttered, shaking his head.

'What? It wasn't like I turned around and said 'oh Chloe it's your bones he wants to jump' now is it?' she said, shrugging.

'Yeah but she ain't stupid is she? Look at the way she practically dived out of the booth just then. So don't stir shit up!' he hissed.

'I'm NOT!' she hissed back, kissing his cheek and giving it the usual nibble of affection, feeling his head turn and kissing his lips when they were within her reach, trying to pull away but being continually kissed instead, Jeff figuring it was about one of the only things he could do to keep her quiet. He loved the fact that she always spoke her mind, but hated that she never listened to him when he observed that a lot of the time it could be to her own detriment.

Once Chloe had got the design off G she headed back to the room where the light box was to add a few alterations the customer wanting doing to it, but did a three sixty spin upon arrival when she saw Shannon and Lauren in there kissing, his hands gripping her ass under her short skirt as he moaned into her mouth.

'Sorry boss I'll come back' she said, spinning on her boot heel and going to walk away.

'No need, just saying goodbye is all' said Shannon, giving Lauren one more kiss before letting her go, not seeing her view Chloe with distaste as she walked past and back around to the front.

'So your sex life's back on track from the look of things?' she said casually, hoping the tinge of jealously she'd just heard in her own voice wouldn't be picked up on by Shannon.

'Pffffffft hardly, that's the most I've got for the last four days' he muttered, scratching the back of his neck and feeling guilty. His guilt was once again due to the fact Lauren had come on the receiving end of a feeling Chloe had built up inside of him. After sitting and watching her tattooing Claire that morning he had felt his libido rage, just sitting and noticing how devastatingly sexy she was, that whenever she laughed it made his chest pull tightly, that watching her run a hand over the back of her neck was an action that almost rendered him to his knees, just by something like that. A simple lifting of her long hair and running of her hand across her neck. The kiss he'd planted on his girlfriend not ten minutes after she'd arrived had been meant for Chloe, it was all he could think of.

'You still ain't beating me hombre, it's only then that you have to worry' she said, switching the light box on and picking up a pencil, positioning the design of a chubby swallow with its beak pierced through a heart and beginning to doodle.

'How many weeks?' he asked.

'Four' she replied glumly.

'Ouch' he said, hoisting himself up onto the counter next to her.

'Yeah, but that's my problem isn't it?' she said, not looking up from the small stars she was drawing around the design.

'Nope, it's his' he said simply. She could feel his eyes burning into her as she sat there, so intense she had no choice but to look up at him, and feel her heart leaping in her chest.

'Don't believe me do you?' he asked, she just shrugged and looked back at her work.

'A wife wanting to feel desired by her husband isn't wrong you know, no matter how much he tells you it is. And I know he does, I can read it all over your face. As I've said before, he's a fucking moron' he said, leaning down and patting her shoulder before sliding off the counter and leaving the room. He had to leave, he didn't trust himself being around her when they were alone so went out to the back of the shop and lit up, drawing fiercely on the cigarette positioned between his thumb and forefinger and sighing. He wanted her so badly it made him ache inside.

Apart from the fleeting moment of affection Chloe had witnessed that morning things between him and Lauren were no better, and just like Mike she was seemingly oblivious to anything being wrong. But, just like with Chloe and Mike something kept him there. As Claire had stressed to him at great length a couple of nights ago when he had once more given her the mother of all ear bendings about it, he was scared of being alone. He hated being single with a passion, so naturally gregarious he couldn't deal with being on his own for long periods of time. And even though she fairly admitted she detested his girlfriend, Claire had summed it up perfectly for him-

'It isn't fair just to keep her around just because you don't wanna be alone dude. You should be with her because she's all you want, not because she's filling a gap'. Of course she was right; he could always count on her to inject both reality and sense into a situation. She was just like Jeff in that respect, who also echoed his wife's words. And Shannon knew it only too well, and knew that his continual flirting with Chloe only spelled it out to him loud and clear that Lauren wasn't the one he wanted.

And he knew it was wrong, knew he shouldn't be giving so much attention to a woman so out of his reach, but as the days grew out and on to another week, the fifth she'd been in his life, he couldn't help but feel like it wasn't all so one sided any more. Because what with her situation at home just worsening by the day, she began to really welcome the attention Shannon gave her, actually welcoming it, to have someone make her feel attractive again. They both knew it was escalating, and to their credit hid it well by still being playful when they were blatantly flirting with each other, but it didn't take one person long to cotton on, especially after watching the way his boss and friend behaved with the lady he affectionately named 'my little skank'.

'SEE YOU'RE DAMN FUCKED NOW BOY! HUMAN OUIJA BOARD COMING ATCHA!' Shouted Shannon as he chased Kerry across the shop, his chest pressed to a giggling Chloe's as he walked her backwards at speed towards Kerry holding the back of her top up in both of his hands.

'Fuck off the pair of you!' he said, really not a fan of anything to do with Ouija or 'evil spirits' as he called them.

'OOOOOH GETTING CLOSER, OOOOOOOOOOH KERRY ALL SHE HAS TO DO NOW IS BURP, SNEEZE OR FART AND THE SPIRITS ARE LOOSE! OOOOOH' He continued to taunt as he pushed Chloe right into Kelly who was pinned into the corner of his booth, the other employees of Gas Chamber Chad, Shane and G all hysterical.

'And now I'm in between two men with my top hoisted up! Oh happy day!' she announced, falling into Shannon's arms in hysterics as he pulled her back and took his hands off her top, but still hugged her. He slid both hands down her bare back before folding them around her waist into a hug, noticing that his touch had made thousands of goose pimples break out on her back.

'Okay dude let go' she said through her laughing.

'Alright, but just so you know, I don't wanna' he whispered into her ear, giving her hips a squeeze as he removed his hands. It was enough to make her need to put severe distance between herself and him, so bolted to the back of the shop shouting 'going for a smoke' as she tore a path out of there as fast as she could. There is was, definite proof he wanted her. All she had to do know was decide whether or not she could fight against the fact she wanted him too. But before she could quietly stress herself out any more she felt a presence behind her and turned to see Kerry, eyeing her curiously.

'Come on, out with it' he said, smiling wryly. She paused for a few seconds and saw his smile widening. He knew.

'Stop it. You know already!' she said.

'Entertain me then' he said, leaning against the wall she faced and still smiling.

'I have a crush on Shannon' she said. 'There, I said it, let the abuse begin!' she followed with, watching her old friend just laugh more.

'Not my style, and you know that kid. And I'd say the word crush would be more suited to some little teenager making eyes at the captain of the football team. Wanting to pin the man on his back and fuck him within an inch of his life is about how I'd describe it' he said, laughing and pulling her into a hug as she hid her face in her hands.

'Is it that obvious?' she said, cringing.

'Only to me, because I know the pair of you so damn well' he replied, scratching her hair affectionately.

'Am I a bad person for really wanting to act on it?' she then asked.

'I think you have to ask yourself how much of a bad person you'd be if you didn't' he said rather cryptically. Having to run back in to cover his next appointment he left her out there pondering what the hell he meant by what he had just said, and boy had it given her food for thought.


	7. Chapter 7 Let the games begin

'JD MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE' Chloe shouted as she ran into the bar on her lunch break, Alice already standing with a treble outstretched in her hand towards her friend.

'Thanks bud' she said, jumping up on a high stool and throwing the drink down her neck.

'That bad?' she said, pulling a questioning face. She'd received a text message from Chloe just half an hour ago saying 'have me a drink ready in 30mins, I need it!!!!!!!!!!', and guessed the reason she needed it must have something to do with Shannon. Of course she was right.

'Okay so it's just escalating so badly now, I can hardly concentrate on anything else other than having sex with him! Oh god I'm such a bad person!' she said, giving her glass back to Alice who filled it with coke, knowing Chloe wouldn't want another since she never tattooed when tipsy.

'He still giving you the come on then?' she asked as Chloe lit up.

'Yeah, in that sly fucking way he has where he makes me unsure if he is actually doing it or not, and then he'll do or say something that just fucking screams 'I want you' and.....' was all she managed to say at lightning speed before Alice held her hand up.

'BREATHE!' she said, laughing. 'Honey, I know this isn't the kind of answer you'd expect when a situation like this is presented, but honestly? Just fuck him. Get it out of your system and get on with it afterwards. Who knows? It might just be that one time and that's all you need, might even help you decide if your relationship with Mike is worth saving. I don't advocate cheating, but hell I can't think of any other way for you to work it out of your system and put you at ease a little more. It might just be one of those wham bam thank you ma'am situations you both need, to either make you realize how good or bad you have it with your respective other halves' said Alice. She knew it was a far cry from the advice she had originally doled out to Chloe, but she honestly couldn't think of many other options.

'Actually, that's one of the things that's run through my head. Get it out of the way and get on with things so to speak. But I just couldn't do it to Mike, no matter how much the problems at home revolve around his attitude towards me, he doesn't deserve that. For me to do something so selfish' she replied, taking a sip of her coke.

'And what he's doing isn't being selfish?' asked Alice.

'But he isn't cheating on me though is he?' she replied.

'He's cheating you out of a sex life' she was quick to fire back. Chloe was stumped on that one, but still couldn't work any logic from Alice's reasoning. The same way she still hadn't been able to work out what Kerry had told her two days ago. She just felt more stuck and more helpless in her situation, which really had reached boiling point.

'But then again, I am biased since I don't like Mike and make no secret of it!' Alice continued, before adding to it. 'Oh I dunno darlin' , I think this one's really for you to decide' she then said, doubting her words already. She knew it probably wasn't the best piece of advice to give her best friend, to tell her to run into the arms of another man the minute her marriage hit the skids. But to be fair, it had begun to do that a long time before Shannon came into Chloe' life; she knew her friend had been miserable for a long time. It made her own head hurt, so she really couldn't imagine what it was doing to Chloe.

'Tell you what partner, how about I call up Ben and get him to leave Gemma in peace tonight, and you blow off Mike and come round to mine for dinner. Eight sharp as usual, just the family' she said, referring to their little family of three firm friends who stuck together no matter what.

'Sounds good to me, anything to get my mind off all of this' she said, draining the last dregs of her drink and looking at her watch.

'Right, I have exactly seventeen minutes to get back to work before I get my ass whooped' she said, making Alice raise an eyebrow.

'Yes, he slaps me when I'm late. And yes it's on the ass too' confessed Chloe, revealing another little snippet of their ongoing flirtation.

'So you'll be taking a slow walk back then?' she replied with a grin. Chloe just rolled her eyes and gave her the middle finger salute, her old friend throwing her head back and laughing that raspy laugh she was famed for as she watched her trouble little friend walk out.

'Later bitch' she called after her.

'Love you too' shouted Chloe from the door, smiling and thinking how lost she'd be without her Alice there for her as always. It took her approximately nineteen and a half minutes to walk back up to the shop and receive what she expected, just in a much more humorous way.

'LATE! Okay dude let her have it!' shouted G from the centre of the shop, Shannon running out from his hidden crouched position by the door and slapping Chloe hard across the ass.

'You're both assholes, complete deplorable assholes! I only get smacked because I'm a girl' she said, poking out her bottom lip as they laughed at her and Shannon pulled her into a hug.

'We do it because we love ya Clo' he said. 'And because it too much of a fine little ass not to smack' he then whispered in her ear, letting her go and walking away. He winked at her before turning, making a shiver run down her spine. She was determined not to be the one left hot and bothered by his games this time, and without even thinking just let her naughty side run free. She could almost feel the word 'lust' tattooed on her back beginning to burn. She but her bag out back and came back into the front of the shop, eyeing him all over.

Walking over to where he was stood in front of the counter talking on the phone she softly touched his shoulder before ducking under his arm that was leant against counter and brushing her body back against his for the briefest of moments as she bent at the waist to read the appointment book in front of him. Pretending to scan the list for her work that afternoon she shifted her weight from one foot to the other, knowing it was making her ass wiggle and then slid back under his arm, moving her body away from him again with a slight serpentine movement of her hips before slinking away to her booth.

Shannon turned away from view and mouthed 'DAAAAAAAAAMN' silently whilst pulling an extremely pained face, sat in the nearest seat and lent forward with his elbow on his knees as he tried to remain normal sounding on the phone to Lauren, when Chloe had given him the kind of erection that took his voice away. Walking back over to her booth she noticed Kerry giving her the eye, arms folded across his chest before pulling one out and waggling his finger at her in a 'come here' motion.

'Now if you're gunna do things like that, other people will start to notice missy' he said, raising an eyebrow while tipping his head toward her.

'He shouldn't think he can get the upper hand in whatever little game he's playing with me' she said, looking back over to where Shannon was sitting, still hunched over on the phone.

'Well from where I'm standing, there's two of you playing' he said, blinking slowly in that comical way he did when he was thinking 'I'm right and you damn well know it!'

'So who's winning ref?' she asked, twirling a strand of blonde and red hair around her finger.

'I think its gunna go to sudden death personally' he said, biting back a smile.

'And by that you mean?' said Chloe, resting a hand on her hip.

'Oh you know what I mean' he said quietly, this time not being able to hold back the smile.

'Mmmmm?' she murmured.

'Mmmmm' he replied, answering her loud and clear with just the tone he used in the noise. They had a way of communicating with each other through a series of noises rather than words; it had always been their thing. Ben likened it to sitting with two human versions of Marge Simpson; so much could be conveyed in just a few grunts. And he was right, because for Chloe all she could feel for the rest of the day was a sense of heaviness in the air, like the moment just before a storm. You know it's coming, and when you see that first flash of lightening you wait for the thunder, and your heart jumps in your chest when you finally hear it.

'Whatcha doin' back there buster?' Asked Chloe three hours later as she worked on the chest piece of a young girl with bright pink hair, feeling Shannon's hand on her back.

'Your strap was hanging, can't have my staff looking messy now can I?' he replied, leaning over the side of the booth and swallowing back a groan at how gorgeous she looked, heavily lined and shadowed black eyes with long eyelashes casting the softest of shadows across her eyelids as she looked down at her piece, the way the lamp made her eyes look more of a very deep amber than brown, the way her multi coloured hair had come loose from the black chopsticks pinning it all up off her face, small pieces framing her face and neck.

'Thanks chief' she replied, looking up and smiling, her heart quickening when she saw the way he was looking at her, that look that was so bad and so sexy it was all she could do not to put the tattoo gun down and vault over the barrier at him. Of course, she'd return it later after she had approximately half an hour later once she'd finished tattooing.

'Your hair needs shaving' she said, running her fingers across the back of his stubbly head, feeling his soft ponytailed hair brush the back of her hand. His pulse began to race dangerously at feeling her hand on him, stroking him in a place that just so happened to render him senseless with the slightest caress.

'I know' he said, reaching back and running his hand over hers, a gesture that made her knees weak and sent her heart up into her chest. No man had ever made her feel that through just the touch of a hand. She pulled it away slowly and felt his fingers brush the insides of hers, a tingling sensation running through her whole hand. It made the blood rush to her head and her mouth feel dry, once again having to flee for fear of jumping on him. She grabbed her cigarettes off the table behind him and her can of soda before turning and leaving.

As she stood and smoked she could hear a tinkling sound, and looked down to see it was her fingernails tapping off the can she held with a shaky hand. She could hear music beginning to play loudly back inside and guessed the shop had closed a little early, which was confirmed when the guys shouted to her from inside the shop.

'See ya tomorrow' she called back, waving and looking at her watch. 6.30pm. She had time to get home, showered and changed before she was expected at Alice's for the 'family meal' as it was known. She couldn't wait, but it seemed she would be delayed somewhat, because as soon as she walked back into the shop it would seem the real games were about to begin.


	8. Chapter 8 Playing with fire

She walked back into the front of the shop and saw Shannon sat in the seat her long black and red skull print scarf was hanging across the back of, his eyes locking onto hers as soon as she came back in and making her feel like a furnace deep in her stomach had been stoked.

'You're leaning on my scarf' she said as she stood over him, her heart racing so quickly she felt sick. Just the way he looked at her, it was so powerful she felt uncomfortable.

'Sorry' he said, leaning forward so she could retrieve it, shifting right to the edge of his seat and reaching out to stroke a hand up her bare leg, making her gasp softly.

'I guessed they'd feel as good as they look' he said, hand sliding up the inside of her thigh slowly and around to the outside as he pulled her closer, making her pussy brush against his forearm as she placed her hands on the back of the chair. He leaned forward and moved her skirt up to kiss her thigh while his hand slid around to her ass and pulled even closer, fingers slowly sliding her top up her body while his mouth made her stomach the focus of attention with kisses and soft flicks of his tongue. She'd never wanted anyone as much as she wanted him right there and then in her whole life; she couldn't fight it any more, the sexual attraction was just too strong to try and sever herself from.

His other arm came up and pulled her down astride him, mouth moving to kiss the tops of her breasts as his hands reached around to undo the two knots that held the cut up t shirt she wore to her body, the one at the waist first, and then at the neck, pulling the cloth away and kissing the bare flesh it had concealed, teeth biting down on her nipple as she gasped loudly. It was what she'd dreamed of for six weeks, his hands and mouth all over her body, and as their mouths came together for the first time she was hooked.

The sound of him breathing hard through his nose and the low groans that seemed to be coming from somewhere deep inside his chest only fuelled Chloe further, her own hands beginning to tug at the white vest he wore until it was over his head, her mouth crashing back against his and sucking his tongue as her hand worked down over his torso and across the bulge forming in his dark green camouflage pants, his hand pushing between her legs to rub at her pussy through the thin fabric of the black thong she wore. Feeling the underwear slide against her he moved it aside and pushed two fingers into her pussy, the wetness already formed there drenching them as he dug them in hard inside her, mouth kissing her neck.

Her hands undid the belt, button and zip as she gasped and panted at the relief she felt of finally being with him like this, like a raw energy that had been locked away tight had been unleashed and surging through her whole body. She'd never felt a craving like this for anything or anyone in her whole life, it was enough to knock the wind out of her. She reached inside his boxers and pulled his dick out, hand sliding up and down the shaft as she heard him groan loudly and then felt his teeth at her neck. He had the kind of girth she'd only ever imagined being parted by, and loved every last second of the feeling of him filling her as she guided him in and rolled her hips firmly against his body, making the last remaining inches of him disappear into a pussy that held him there tightly.

'Oh, oh my god I need this so badly' she hissed, her breath catching in her throat as her body bounced on top of him, hips slamming against him hard as he ran his hands up her back and sucked her nipples, his heart hammering in his chest so strongly he could hear the blood pumping in his ears.

'I've just needed you badly since you first walked into my fucking shop' he said, releasing her nipple from between his teeth and pulling her face to his to kiss her fiercely, his hands pressing into her back and sliding across her sweaty flesh as their bodies slammed against each other in heated unison, both groaning and panting so loudly it was like they were making enough noise for six people. But neither could help it, finally what had been building between them was playing out at last, every last moment so intense and raw both knew they'd never forget it. And Chloe knew she'd never be able to listen to the Marilyn Manson cover of 'Personal Jesus' ever again without a flood of lust filled memories pounding through her head, just like the song pounded through the speakers right then.

And as he kissed and licked her tits again, hands grabbing her ass firmly and pulling her against him harder Shannon couldn't believe any man would abstain from something so amazing, from a woman who felt like she did, smelled like she did, looked like she did as her face contorted in ecstasy and she gripped his shoulders, throwing her head back and crying out as his dick hit her g spot over and over again.

The pent up frustration she was working out wasn't just since the last time she'd been with Mike, it was from her whole time with him. She'd never had sex like this with him, ever. Nothing could measure up to the almost savage intensity they moved against each other with, Shannon suddenly moving from the seat and carrying her until she felt her back press into the wall so hard it almost winded her, and if that didn't the way he began to pound into her with near primal aggression sure as hell did.

'I swear you have the most beautiful pussy I've ever felt, damn baby you're so fucking sexy' he breathed in her ear, fingers clenching into her ass cheeks as he drove into her harder with every thrust. It was everything she needed and more, she finally felt desired, wanted, attended to. All from a man who wasn't her husband, and as that moment as a euphoric rush of heat began to swell deep inside her she didn't care either, since this was the first time she'd ever felt herself cum from penetration alone.

'AHHHHHHH, AHHHHHHHH, OH FUCK YES! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH' she screamed, body crashing against his as the pleasure that shot through her like a lightning bolt, triggering his own release and making him grunt deeply with effort as his hips battered hard against her body and he closed his eyes tightly, biting her neck and letting out a long sigh as he came so hard he thought he was going to fall over for a few seconds and then did, taking her down to the floor with him. And just when she thought she was going to lie there and endure an uncomfortable silence in his arms she felt him move and roll her off him and onto her back, sliding the remaining items of clothing from his body, doing the same for her until they were both completely naked.

'What? You didn't honestly think I was done did you?' he said, lying between her legs and stroking his thumb across her cheek while the other hand ran down the back of her thigh. He didn't give her chance to reply, covering her mouth with his once again and clasping her body close.

'I'm glad you aren't' she replied, breaking their kiss and running her hands over his tied back hair.

'You really will be in about ten seconds' he said, before disappearing down her body, licking her flesh as his mouth travelled lower, making her rest her head back on the floor and smile in anticipation of what she was about to feel after going for over four years without. And when she felt his tongue part her lips for the first time and run from her pussy slowly up to her clit Chloe could have cried, her whole body tensing up as intense tingles built up at the tip of her clit from the stimulation of his tongue rolling around it in a circle, a long croaky 'ahhhhhhhh' escaping her mouth as her hands stroked his head, legs wriggling around in pure heaven as she felt his tongue sliding down to her pussy to drag pools of wetness back up to her clit.

'FUCK! Ooooooooh you're amazing I swear, oh that's too good!' she panted, gritting her teeth and digging her nails into his arms as her legs brushed the sides of his head. He moved his hands down her body and used them to part her pussy lips, granting him better access for his tongue as he pushed his forearms down against her legs to keep them forced open.

'You missed this didn't you?' he said, looking up at her with a smile and watching her body writhe.

'Hell yeah, ahhhhhhhhhhhhh' she breathed, feeling his lips suck on her clit.

'Well you don't have to miss it anymore baby girl' he replied, before going back to sucking her clit, his fingertips stroking her labia before she felt him pushing his fingers slowly inside her. He just couldn't believe her husband wouldn't do this for her, that he didn't like it. What the fuck was wrong with the man? Feeling her smooth shaven flesh against his face, his tongue burying itself in wet warmth that felt so erotic he couldn't help but groan as he did it, tasting her outside and in. And in turn Chloe just couldn't get enough of him licking at her, she hadn't realized just how much she had missed it until it had begun, and her moans echoed off the walls of the shop so loudly she was sure people walking past would have been able to hear.

'Does that feel good?' he asked her, fingers pushing as far as he could stretch them inside her, tongue beating from side to side across her clit.

'It feels amazing, don't you dare fucking stop' she panted, her head thudding back on the floor again as she let out a high pitched cry and hissed at how utterly consuming the pleasure he gave her was. It felt so good sometimes she pushed him away, and he'd just look up at her and grin with a small throaty laugh, knowing he was driving her so utterly crazy with his touch she could hardly bear it, grabbing her wrists and pushing them to the floor as his mouth pressed against her harder, continuing until he'd been down there for half an hour and very happy to stay there for as long as it took to make her cum, which wasn't much longer at all.

'Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh fuck I'm gunna cum, oh god Shannon don't stop, don't stop, mmmmm yeah lick me harder, FUCK!' she cried out, feeling his tongue lick her with such speed it drove her hard over the edge, an orgasm of such force surging through her body she felt faint for a few moments, her body shuddering uncontrollably as the last few blissful waves continued to pulse, his mouth coming back up to hers and kissing her.

'You're way too good at that' she panted, watching him smile at her.

'I try' he replied modestly, kissing the tip of her nose as she felt his dick begin to seek entrance to her again. She opened her legs wider and wrapped them around his body, feeling him sink back in with a satisfied groan and grind into her slow and hard, every muscle in his back and arms flexing with effort as he held his weight off her on his elbows. Her legs opened up to him as much as possible, feeling his pelvis hitting hers with each deep stroke of his dick inside her, body moving with hers in perfect unison as one hand reached back to stroke her heavily tattooed leg while his tongue danced on air with hers, his mouth then covering hers completely as his tongue slid in and stifled the deep gasps emanating from her mouth.

And it didn't take long for either of them to be brought to that climatic state once more, moving in total frenzy against each other on the floor as he came just before she did, and then lay on top of her completely out of breath but more sexually satisfied than he'd been in a long time.

'SHIT!' she suddenly shouted, realizing it was 7.45pm, giving her just fifteen minutes to get to Alice's.

'Where's the fire?' he asked as she slid out underneath him and began to pull clothes back onto her body.

'I'm meant to be at Alice's in fifteen minutes, and she's gonna freak if I'm late' said Chloe, pulling her thong and skirt back on and then looking around for her top.

'It's over here' he said, standing up and picking it top up off the counter and then bending to retrieve his boxers and jeans. He slid back into them and then helped her with her top, tying the knots for her and then turning her in his arms.

'At least tell me you have time to kiss me goodbye' he said huskily, hands rubbing her lower back across the pistol tattoo.

'I think after that it's the least I can do' she said, kissing him so hotly it told him in no uncertain terms how much she'd enjoyed herself. 'And now I really have to run, or I'm dead and.......' she continued before she was cut up.

'Go, its fine. See ya in the morning' he said, smacking her ass as she picked up her bag and scarf and hurtled out of there shouting 'bye' over her shoulder. Two seconds after she had unlocked the front door and let herself out again she came back.

'Oh and Shannon?' she called.

'Yes Clo?' he replied.

'Thanks' she said, winking and disappearing again.

'You're really fucking welcome too young lady' he muttered to himself, shaking his head and laughing. He didn't feel bad right at that moment, but ten minutes later when he was locking up the shop and Lauren called him he felt a cold wave of guilt run through him.

'Hey baby' he said upon answering.

'Hey gorgeous, you gunna be long at work?' she asked, happy to hear the sound of his voice.

'Nope, just on my way home now, want me to pick you up on my way?' he asked, clipping his keys back on his wallet chain and turning to walk to his car.

'No need, I'm already at yours, in your bed, waiting for you' she replied, turning her naked body over so she was lying on her back.

'Okay, I guess I'll be seeing you soon then' he said, feeling his insides ache. After what he had just inflicted upon Chloe, he just prayed his dick would want to perform again for the woman it should be. Turns out it did, but all the way through all Shannon could do was hate himself for not enjoying the sex he was having with Lauren half as much as he'd enjoyed it with Chloe. So much so that he just couldn't get there, and for the first time in his life faked an orgasm because his body was just too tired to carry on.

'Are you okay baby?' she said afterwards, lying against his chest and feeling his hand stroking her back, the arm around her holding her close.

'Yeah I'm fine gorgeous, I'm just tired. It's been a long day, and what you gave me just now's made me even more exhausted' he said, stroking her hair.

'I won't surprise you next time if you're just gunna complain about it' she muttered, pulling herself out of his embrace and getting out of bed.

'Lauren I didn't mean it like............. oh for fuck sake' he said, watching her pull on a pair of his sweat pants and her bra and stomp out of the bedroom. Touchy didn't even come close to the way she could be sometimes, and as he lay there he began to really think on whether he wanted to be with her anymore, because one thing was for sure; if she let him all he wanted to do was keep on having illicit sex with Chloe, the bad boy side of him really not caring that she was a married woman.

And he wasn't the type of man to cheat on a girlfriend, hell this was the first time he'd cheated on anyone and the guilt alone made him think that perhaps it would be best if he did finish it. Even though she was heavily disliked by many, she didn't deserve to be kept hanging around when he was pretty certain she wasn't what he wanted anymore.

**Once again, thank you kindly to my reviewers! It's lovely to read that my efforts are being appreciated xx**


	9. Chapter 9 Telling the family

'So do we get to smack your ass for being twenty minutes late too?' said Alice as she opened the front door, hearing Ben shout 'finally! The eagle has landed!' from the kitchen.

'Just this once' said Chloe, entering the house and bending over with a cheeky grin on her face.

'Get in!' shouted Alice, smacking her ass playfully and shaking her head as she shut the door.

'So why the hell are you so late?' asked Ben, welcoming her with a hug as he stopped stirring the pan on the stove. Chloe couldn't answer for a few seconds, for a montage of images graphically depicting the reason of her lateness began to flash through her mind's eye. Shannon's teeth locking around her nipple, his hands running over her legs and ass, the way he sounded when he came, the way his eyes burned that touch brighter blue as she'd rode him in the chair. And all of a sudden, she felt the guilt of what she'd done hit her completely as she looked over Ben's shoulder at the refrigerator and saw a picture of herself and Mike with Alice and Ben at a bar on her birthday.

Feeling her let out a huge sigh as he let her go he only had to look at her once to know exactly what had happened, and when he studied her neck closer the teeth marks left there sealed the deal for him.

'Oh shit, you slept with him didn't you?' he said, hand covering his mouth as Alice approached.

'Yes' she said quietly, dropping her head from his gaze.

'Out you come Jack, I'm gunna need a good few sips of you, and I think someone else does too' said Alice, pressing her hand into Chloe's shoulder as she reached to open the fridge and pull the bottle of whisky out. She steered her friend into a seat, Ben joining her and fetched three glasses, pouring out a very generous measure in each and handing them out as she sat down opposite and reached for Chloe's hand, stroking the back of it and making her look up at her.

'So, how was it?' she asked, taking the first sip of her drink and feeling its warmth burn her throat in that same old comforting way. Once again Chloe took a while to reply, consumed again by flashes of their tryst on the shop floor burning in her head.

'It was the best sex I've ever fucking had, it was just..............................wild. Exactly what I needed and a hell of a lot more' she replied, untwisting her hair from the chopsticks and re combing it back with her fingers to pull up into a neater twist. She let out a heavy breath through her nose and rested her head on Ben's shoulder, taking a sip of her drink and rubbing a hand across her chin. 'I feel like I have the word whore burned across my head. I'm such a bad person, how the hell could I put Mike through this?' she then said, a tear prickling her eye.

'He doesn't know, so you're not putting him through anything. What you did was a result of what he's put you through, it was a moment of madness Chloe, one which I see you regret now' said Alice comfortingly.

'That's the thing though sweetie, it wasn't a moment of madness. We've been winding each other up all fucking day; we both knew exactly what we were doing. No moment of madness, no losing my mind for a second, I just couldn't and didn't want to resist him any longer. I wanted him and I made a conscious decision to have him. End of. I'm a selfish bastard and then some' she said, still leaning against Ben who had wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

'This is my fault, I shouldn't have said what I said at the bar earlier!' Moaned Alice, running a hand through her short hair and looking up to see a pan boiling over on the stove. She shot up and switched off the gas, covering the pans of food with their lids to keep it all warm and sat back down again just as Ben spoke.

'What did you say earlier then?' he asked.

'I said she should just go fuck him and get it out of her system' she groaned, hearing her words from nine hours ago crystal clear in her head.

'YOU TOLD HER TO DO WHAT?' he shouted.

'I KNOW! ME AND MY STUPID BIG MOUTH!' she replied, holding her hands high.

'Alice of all the advice you could have given, you ha....' was as far as he got before Chloe interrupted.

'ENOUGH! Both of you please! This isn't anyone's fault other than mine, I made the decision, regardless of what Alice might or might not have said, it was totally my call' she said, addressing Ben at the end of her sentence and knocking back the rest of her Jack.

'So..................................what happens now? Referring back to my stupid comments earlier today, did it get him out of your system?' Alice asked.

'I guess I'll know that when I see him in the morning. And as for what happens now, well, let's eat. The more I talk about this right now the more the guilt just stings me, and I think I'll have enough of that to deal with when I get home and look at Mike for the first time' she said, this time breaking down into tears. Even though in her mind her marriage was hanging by just a few threads, she felt wretched she had betrayed the man that above all she still loved with all her heart.

Meanwhile Shannon was at home having his eardrums blasted out by a hysterical Lauren. The guilt of what he'd done was too much for him to stand, and in lying alone and thinking in bed after she'd stormed out he'd realized that in sleeping with someone else he'd sealed the fate of his relationship. He just wouldn't have done it if Lauren was really the girl he wanted to be with, so had just ended it.

'WHAT DID I DO? WHY DO YOU WANNA LEAVE ME? I DON'T UNDERSTAND!' she cried, hanging onto his arm as they sat on the couch.

'Lauren, you know it isn't working. And so do I. You didn't do anything wrong per say, I just don't think we're suited anymore, it just doesn't feel right for me and I'm sorry. I really am' he said, resting his hand on her arm.

'Is it because I haven't wanted as much sex as you do? Is that it? It is isn't it? OF ALL THE SHALLOW REASONS TO FINISH WITH SOMEONE, YOU PICK THAT! FUCK YOU SHANNON!' she screamed, throwing herself up off the couch and leaving, slamming both the living room and the front door behind her, half hoping he'd get up and follow her but bursting into tears again when she realized he wasn't going to. It really was over.

Shannon sat back on the couch and felt awful, but in a sense very relived too. He didn't have to pretend to be happy anymore, and Lauren was now free to go and find someone who actually wanted to be with her, rather than someone only hanging on because he didn't want to be alone. And on that thought he realized that at that moment he didn't want to be alone, so decided to pay a visit to his friends, who were just finishing enjoying some alone time when he rang their front doorbell.

'That was pretty good timing' said Jeff, his hands pressed against his wife's bare chest as she sat astride him on the couch, out of breath with her inner muscles clenching around his dick still from the explosive orgasm he'd just pummelled into her body.

'I'll say' replied Claire, leaning forward and licking one of his nipples before kissing him and throwing herself up off him and into her clothes to go and answer the door.

'Sorry did I disturb you two? I'll go' said Shannon, turning at the front door when he noticed Claire still doing up her belt.

'Don't be daft mate! Get your ass inside. Jeff! Get dressed Shannon's here!' she called as she walked up the long hallway to the kitchen, Odin jumping all over Shannon as he followed behind her.

'Hey bro' said Jeff, shirtless with a big smile on his face and a claw mark from his wife's nails across his chest.

'You fucking beast woman!' Shannon laughed as he saw the four deep red scratches on his friend's skin. Claire could only poke her tongue out comically and laugh.

'He likes it' she said, looking at Jeff who just continued to beam brightly before pulling his baseball vest back on and grabbing himself a can of beer from the fridge, and throw one to Shannon too.

'So what do we owe the pleasure of your company then?' asked Jeff, reaching to the back of the fridge and pulling out a bottle of Stella Artois for his wife, who detested beer.

'I have news. I finished it with Lauren, I'm a single man. Oh for fuck sake go on I can see it's killing you!' he said, watching Claire look like she was holding onto some kind of eruption.

'YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! GOOD BOY SHANNON! WOO! SHE'S GONE AND SHE'S NEVER COMING BACK! OH I'M SO HAPPY!' She shouted, punching the air in triumph and running around the table in the centre of the kitchen and bear hugging Shannon, kissing his cheek before running off again on her lap of honour.

'Well at least you're happy' he said, watching her finish her lap and sit down adjacent to him with Jeff and open her bottle.

'Aren't you?' she said suddenly, hoping her little display hadn't upset him. She did have a habit of doing things on impulse without properly thinking them through.

'Yeah, I'm relieved. But you know, it's never a good feeling to watch the person you did care about once upon a time that upset' he said, with Claire nodding.

'So what made you finish it then?' asked Jeff, reaching down to feed Odin a grape from the fruit bowl in front of him. He was the only dog he'd ever met who would prefer a grape or cherry tomato to a slice of ham or dog treats.

'In a word; guilt' replied Shannon, knocking back a mouthful of beer as Claire threw him her cigarettes. 'Just help yourself, you always do' she said, then laughed as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a carton of Marlboro reds and raised two fingers at her.

'About the thoughts you're having regarding Chloe huh?' she asked, lighting up and handing it to Jeff as well as a kiss on the cheek.

'Erm...................................well.................................they ain't just thoughts anymore. We........................................yeah' he said, his facial expression giving it away as he drummed his fingers on the table and rested his head on his hand, a very small smile starting to curl his lips as the memory of Chloe's nakedness pressed to his flickered through his mind.

'Oh you bad motherfucker' said Claire almost in a monotone, eyes widening as she started to laugh into her hand.

'Say something Nero' said Shannon, blowing smoke from his nose and watching Jeff just looking right at him and shake his head.

'What she said' he said, head still shaking. 'You're playing with fire dude, but you don't need me to tell you that do you?' he said, a smile finally spreading across his face.

'Nope, but so far I really like being burnt' he said, raising his eyebrows as he took a swig of beer.

'So I take it you don't want it to be a onetime thing then?' he asked.

'I dunno, it might be it might not be. Regardless of what I want, she is still married, even though at the time I really didn't give two shits about that fact' Shannon replied.

'If you want my advice, stay away dude. Really, because I swear to god if another man ever laid his hands on her I'd fucking decapitate him and use his head as a bowling ball. The last thing you want is a pissed off husband coming and tearing shreds off you for fucking his old lady' said Jeff as he pointed at his wife.

'Not that I want anyone else's hands on me but yours my love' she replied, making him smile. Shannon took on board what his friends had said, but once he had arrived home and gone to bed he just couldn't get Chloe out of his mind. He was finding it hard to feel bad about something that had felt so damn good if he was honest. He supposed he'd feel worse if he actually knew her husband, but right at that moment the only thing he felt bad about was that he'd cheated on his now ex girlfriend as she didn't deserve it. Meanwhile, someone else's guilt was beginning to manifest so strongly she could hardly hold back the tears or self hatred.

'God, considering this is all you've been on at me about I expected you to look a little happier' said Mike, looking down at his wife as they made love.

'I am happy honey, I'm just tired. I love you' she said, curling her arms around his neck and pulling him down into a kiss, her hands running down his back as she tried to pretend she was enjoying the sex they were having, when all the time she could only think of one man. And needless to say it wasn't the man who was inside her at that moment, it was the one currently lying in his bed alone dreaming about her and what they had shared on the floor of the shop earlier that night.


	10. Chapter 10 The second round

'You just can't help yourself can you girl?' said Shane as he sat and inked a design onto the other side of Chloe's neck between appointments the following afternoon at the shop. It was a comment that meant a lot more to her at that moment than he knew.

'Nope, it was too good not to get it done!' she said, referring to the picture on a new flash sheet she had seen and shouted 'WANT!' at as soon as she'd laid her pretty brown eyes on it. Her new tattoo was a portrait of James Dean with 'Girls Ruin' underneath it on the side of her neck, and it was so perfectly detailed, depicting a man she admired so much so perfectly she just couldn't resist having him done, and also thinking up ideas to add to it.

Whenever she had a weight on her mind she often got a tattoo, there was something about the pain she found oddly soothing, and at that point the pain in her neck was taking away the pain in her head over her discretion the previous evening with Shannon less than seven feet from where she was sat in Shane's booth. And it was taking her mind off things just nicely until the man himself showed up just after 3pm, after spending the morning training for an upcoming match and also filming various escapades for 'The Hardy Show' with Matt and Jeff.

Once she was done she went to the bathroom to clear up the remaining traces of ink and cover the tattoo herself so Shane could get on with his next appointment. Just as she was removing the last trace of a mix of blood and ink Shannon came in, shutting and locking the door behind him.

'Nice' he said, looking at the new ink. 'Mmmmmm, even nicer' he added, running his hands down her sides and kissing the other side of her neck.

'Shannon' she said, starting to protest.

'Uh huh' he said, taking a trail of kisses up her neck to her cheek, reducing her to a shuddering mess.

'Stop' she said, her head knowing that was the very thing she had to do, but her body betraying that notion as she leant into his chest.

'But you don't want me to, and neither do I' he replied, his nose touching hers as he stared into her eyes. And before she could even possibly make sense of it she melted to him again, hands running down his chest as they kissed. He lifted her up and sat her on the edge of the wash basin, hands resting either side of her waist while she curled her legs around him, tongue circling with his as she moaned softly.

'Chloe you gunna be long in there dude? I gotta piss' shouted G on the other side of the door.

'Gimmie five minutes bud' she called back.

'I might need a little longer than that' said Shannon, before softly biting her earlobe and then sucking it.

'No, not here. Too many people out there' she said, turning his head to look at him.

'Are you doing anything later?' he said, raising an eyebrow at her.

'No' she confessed.

'Then come back to mine after work' he replied, hands running softly up and down her arms.

'And what about Mike? And Lauren?' she sighed, a shred of guilt cutting in.

'What about him? Tell him we're open late or something. And as for Lauren, she's history. I couldn't carry on with her after last night, wasn't fair on her. She's not what I want' he replied. 'C'mon, you know it's gonna be worth it' he followed with, hands now running over her stomach underneath the black shirt she wore.

'Okay' she agreed before she was kissed again, the kind of kiss that made her pulse quicken and lungs feel deprived of air. She eventually managed to pull herself away, kissing his neck then his chest through the black t shirt he was wearing when she slid back down to the floor.

'Wait there' she said, opening the door a little to see the hallway empty. She ran out quick to the front of the shop while Shannon did the same a few seconds after, heading in the opposite direction. And later that evening as she drove back to his, following along behind him Chloe asked herself over and over 'what the hell are you doing?' and thought about turning off the route and heading home, but just couldn't manage to do it. Her self control was too weak, even though in the back of her mind she could hear own voice chanting 'you know what you're doing is wrong' she still couldn't help herself. The lust she had for Shannon burned her blind to any rationality.

And as she was dragged through his front door and up the stairs to the bedroom, managing to kiss him and walk backwards at the same time any guilt she may have harboured also deserted her thoughts. Once again she had made the conscious decision to let selfishness prevail. He lay her down on the bed, positioning his body next to her and pulling her onto her side, one of his legs covering hers as they resumed kissing again, both relaxing into it easily, the need for it to be an event of speed diminishing into just a simple need for each other. It was almost like invisible wires had been sewn between them after the first experience, their bodies longed for the feel of each other even after just one time. One time was often all it took.

Running his hand down her back while the other used its hand to tickle the side of her neck lightly Shannon could feel the lust contained within him for the amazing woman next to him burn throughout his body, the epicentre of that mounting desire starting to tent the front of his jeans. He slid his hands up her body, hooking his thumbs under her top and pulling it over her head, a feeling of satisfaction as he witnessed her unbutton and pull off her jeans, body moving away for only the briefest of moments to remove the denim from her legs, kicking them free of her feet and turning back to him, this time hooking her leg over the top of his.

Feeling his hands roam her body, making tiny contractions from deep within ripple the flesh with a pleasant vibration, Chloe felt a sigh release from her throat without any conscious annunciation of it, the effect he had on her rendering her seemingly powerless of her own voice. His hands slid around her back to unclip her bra and drag it slowly from her body downwards, hands then coming back up to run down from her wrists right to her shoulders as he forced his leg further between hers and pushed her onto her back, his knee moving to press against her thigh to hold her there. As if she'd want to be anywhere else but under his incredible body which had just been reintroduced to her eyes as he pulled his t shirt off and pushed the cap and bandana he was wearing off his head.

He came back down to her, leaning his weight on one elbow while he used his other hand to stroke her thigh, and softly flicked his tongue against her lips until her mouth opened to him and she reached up to hold his head in her hands, stroking his face before sliding them down his tattooed neck and onto his chest. He had the kind of build she'd only ever witnessed in alabaster rock chiselled within an inch of its life, and to run her hands over a real life version practically made her fingertips feel orgasmic.

She ran her thumbs over his already stiffened nipples and heard him grumble happily deep in his throat, his hand working down her body to stroke her toned stomach and grasp her underwear, pulling it from her body with an urgent yank and snapping the thin stringy material that barely covered her in the first place.

'Bastard' she scolded, thumping him in the chest.

'Sorry' he said, giving her the kind of look that she could forgive murder to and kissing the end of her nose. 'I just love you naked is all' he followed with, sitting up and moving further down the bed slightly to reposition himself over her stomach, tongue tracing across the tattoo there and the ones on her side, sketching the details with a feather light touch while he slid his hands down the insides of her thighs. She lay back and let herself be completely taken away by him, her body registering all the new sensations his touch gave her, mind processing each caress and her voice responding to it.

'One, two, three, four..........five.......six, seven' he counted, his attention now solely devoted to her long legs.

'What are you doing?' she asked, reaching out to stroke his hair.

'Counting how many tattoos I find on these gorgeous legs' he said. 'Eight, nine, ten........eleven, twelve'. For each tattoo he came across he rubbed his hand over it, and then pressed a kiss into the etching too followed by a swirl of his tongue, wanting to taste her all over. He turned her onto her front and continued to attend to her body with his mouth and hands, hearing her breathing quicken and then stop, somewhat amused but at the same time pleased with himself that his touch made her forget to breathe.

'Mmmmmm, perfect ass' he whispered, trailing his fingertips over it and gently biting the side of the left cheek, hard enough for her to feel and respond with a content 'ahhhh' but soft enough not to leave a mark. He'd give her exactly what she needed without ever leaving a trace of being there, except of course what he planned to inflict upon her that would stick fast in her memory. But her husband couldn't see inside there.

Pulling her hips up until she was on her knees, top half of her body still pressed down into the bed Shannon forced her legs open and spread her ass cheeks with his hands, delving his tongue straight into her slit and working it back and forth all the way up to her anus and back again. He could have teased her, made her practically growl with frustration, but the want inside of him for her to really enjoy herself with him overrode any desire to be an evil tease right then. He pressed his tongue flat against her parted lips and worked it up and down, stimulating her glistening opening at the same time as the tip rubbed against her clit, swollen and hard from arousal already.

Chloe pressed her forehead into the bed and moaned, feeling her hips jerk involuntarily against his face, his hands holding her steady while his tongue dipped into her core, her muscles softly squeezing it and coating it in her juices. She felt his hand slide around and press into her stomach before his thumb came back to rub a circle around the edge of her clit, and then directly over the tip while he stretched his tongue as far as he could inside her, mouth completely buried into the hot wet flesh. Her pussy practically had a current running from it onto his tongue which he swallowed back hungrily, a deep moan vibrating against her while hot sharp breaths provided further stimulation.

Just as she was starting to get lost in the heavenly rhythm he had established Chloe felt him move, lying on his back between her legs and pulling her hips down until her clit was in reach of his tongue and beginning to circle and rub it with increased pressure than before, two fingers parting her velvety soft lips and pushing into her slick tightness, feeling her muscles clamping on him, a surge of pleasure running from his fingers, through his hand and down his arm from the contractions he felt.

He didn't waste time to change the movement of his fingers from slow penetration to pushing forward hard and massaging her, so hard it felt to her like he was trying to push them back through the front of her body, her g spot tingling so strongly she could barely stand it, each movement of his fingers inciting more pleasure than the last. Her clit began to burn and ache as the ecstasy mounted up strongly, her pulse quickening dangerously as her mind felt like it was caught between going blank and into overdrive, barely able to think clearly at all with all the sensations coursing through her shaking body, damp with a sheen of perspiration.

'Mmmmmmmmm that felt so good' she purred when he had moved back up the bed underneath her again, kissing her throat and clasping her body tightly to his. She could taste herself all over his mouth when they kissed, and it made the pit of her stomach grow tighter with heated arousal, raking her nails down his arms and back up again across his thick neck, her mouth leaving his to run over every last crease and dip of his chest and stomach, fingers undoing his belt as she felt the eagerness of his erection pressing into her palm. She freed him of the material confides and pulled his jeans and boxers off him, positioning herself between his legs and running her tongue in a line up his washboard stomach while her hand grasped his cock.

She moved her mouth to her hand and discreetly deposited a trail of saliva into her palm before wrapping it lightly around the head and rubbing it up and down, then alternating to a gentle twist, an almost guttural moan rattling up from his throat as his chest began to rise and fall at a faster pace. She used her other hand to cup his balls and gently roll them around, tongue circling his navel and slowly working lower. When he felt her mouth enclose around him at last Shannon let out a shuddering breath and ran his hands through her hair, looking down to watch his length being swallowed back into her throat, her lips crushing around the base hard before dragging slowly back up to the tip, her lips tightening again to push back down over him and slide his foreskin back in one downward motion.

He had one the nicest looking dicks could remember seeing, more girth than length and currently rippled with engorged veins that her lips emptied of blood as they pressed against them, tightening and releasing her grip as her mouth travelled up and down his shaft, tongue pressing and circling. The two small studs she had pierced through her tongue added the kind of friction that made him squeeze his eyes tightly shut and groan so deeply he didn't sound human, more animal as he started to pant, hands pulling her hair as her mouth moved faster, sucking him into hot wetness again and again.

'Fuck this woman's unreal at giving head' he thought, something he would have said out loud if he thought he could actually speak. But after a few more upward passes of her mouth over his dick he had to find a voice.

'Clo, come here. I love this but I really need you badly babe' he said, pulling her up by the top of her arms and letting out the most aroused growl of pure lust Chloe had ever heard from a man as she reached back and guided him inside her, the heat of slick walls gripping and encasing him totally as he felt her nails run along the sides of his head, her tongue pressing against his in an open mouthed kiss. The friction created from their bodies moving against each other in such hot, blind passion brought about such overwhelming sensations both felt lost in a sea of ecstasy, the whole world could have fallen away and neither would have noticed.

But one thing that sparked through Chloe's mind was fear, she was scared of how she felt when she was with Shannon, because it was just too perfect to be just sex, being with him was the most intense experience of her life. It seemed she wasn't alone.

'You do things to me I can't even fucking describe' he panted, running his fingers down her cheeks to her neck, trailing in circles to her chest and pushing her over as he turned to lie on top of her, pulling her legs up around him to grant deeper access for his dick, burying himself into her ball deep as the pace sped up, his pelvis crashing against hers over and over as he drove in with complete abandon, fuelled by the loud cries flowing from her mouth, hanging open in exertion as she felt her nipples licked and bitten.

His mouth finally came back to hers for the briefest of moment before retracting into the crevice between her neck and shoulder, tongue swirling across the over sensitive goose pimple riddled skin as he moaned deeply, moving faster against her until he completely lost control of his own body and drove into her like a jackhammer, feeling her legs wrap around him tightly and nails run down his back, an orgasm propelling through her body so violently it all but took her to another planet she was so consumed by the pleasure. Just as Shannon must have been when he came with a deafening primal noise right in her ear, arms gripping her upper body tightly as they fought to regain their breath.

'Chloe?' he said finally, raising himself up off her body and leaning his weight on his forearms either side of her.

'Hmmm?' she replied, fingers stroking his chest idly.

'Don't go' he said, nearing his face to hers, kissing her just as their noises pressed together.


	11. Chapter 11 Discussions

Hearing him way those two words to her made it seem even more real. And the way he'd looked at her had terrified her too, made her scared that she'd never have a man look at her like that again. Mike didn't look at her like that; ever, with something behind his eyes  
that just projected 'stay with me, I wanna be with you'.

'Wait a minute' she said, kissing his cheek and pushing him off her to slide out from underneath him and get off the bed, pulling her cell from her handbag and walking out of the bedroom.

'Hey cupcake how's it going?' said Alice as she answered her cell, scratching the head of her large Red Setter dog Max who'd been dozing next to her before the shrill ringtone had cut through his slumber.

'Alice, I kinda need a favour' said Chloe, walking down the hallway and resting her bare back against the window opposite the stairs when she got there.

'Okay, go ahead' she replied, with a little apprehension at what she was about to be told in her voice.

'Can I tell Mike I'm staying at yours tonight?' she asked, biting her lip nervously as the magnitude of what she was doing started to dawn on her.

'So you're with him again then? Well, he must be something' said Alice, before continuing. 'Leave Mike to me doll, I'll call him and say you ran me home from work and crashed out on the sofa. Tell him I've thrown a blanket over you and left you be. It'll sound more convincing if it comes from someone who doesn't give a shit about the person she's lying to'.

'Thanks honey, I love you' she said, running a hand through her hair and sighing.

'I love you too, call me in the morning babe, or even better come over. Then at least you have actually been here huh?' she said, looking over at Max and seeing him examining one of her bright pink socks with interest.

'Okay, promise' she said, flipping her phone shut and walking back to the bedroom, straight into Shannon's embrace under the covers of the big bed. She knew how wrong it was, but she just couldn't ignore something that prevailed above anything else; how right it felt. How right he felt. Just lying there next to him feeling him pressed against her, feeling his breath blowing down through his nose softly onto her forehead as she lay with her head on his shoulder, feeling his lips start to kiss her just above her eyebrow while his hands stroked her hip and her back.

'So do I have you for the night?' he asked, fingers running right up her spine back to her neck.

'You do. So, what do you plan on doing with me while I'm here?' she asked, watching him grin widely and begin to laugh naughtily before kissing her.

'Suits me just fine' she said, pulling away for a second and looking at him, stroking his hair and then letting herself be kissed again. Whatever kind of irregular state she'd slipped into, with Mike and her marriage far from her thoughts, she really didn't want to come back out of it.

'Has anyone ever told you how fucking beautiful you are? Really, you're incredible' he said, thumb circling the apple of her cheek.

'I'm pushing forty' she said with a little smile and burst of laughter.

'Thirty three ain't forty! And who the fuck cares anyway? Do you care that I'm twenty eight?' he asked. She just shook her head and ran her fingernails across his shoulders and then up to his neck, something he seemed to like very much.

'So there you go, now be quiet' he said, jabbing his finger lightly into the side of her nose.

'You gunna make me boy?' she said, a smug smile on her face as she laughed through her nose at the moody face he pulled at her.

'I'll stick my fist in your mouth if you don't watch it' he threatened jokingly as he tapped it against her lips. She just giggled softly and continued to stroke his neck, knowing already that was the quickest way to reduce him to putty in her hands.

'I'd rather you stuck it somewhere else' she said, breaking the kiss again to look at him with a small smile playing her lips, winking and then touching her tongue to her top lip ever so briefly, something that made his dick stir just to watch.

'I bet you would too you dirty girl' he said, raising an eyebrow at her and laughing, resting his weight on one arm while he began to kiss her again, running his hands down between her tits and over her stomach before resting on her hip.

'I'd prefer other parts of you more though' she said, gently biting his lower lip.

'My tongue for one thing huh?' he said, lips kissing from hers down under her chin and lightly across her throat.

'Oh yeah, definitely your tongue. Your dick ain't exactly bad either' she said, making him smile. Compliments from a woman you thought would never even give you a second look where nice to hear.

'I'd be here all fucking night if I listed all the things I like about you' he confessed; mouth now brushing over her collarbones. She just laughed and felt that happy rush of endorphins she always associated with anything shiny and new like this. And from there onwards no more words were spoken, mouths too busy once again reconnecting the chain of arousal that had lead them there in the first place, rolling around in a mess of tangled limbs and bed sheets.

The following morning Alice had called her to say not to bother coming over since she had to race Max to the vets in another 'he's eaten something he shouldn't have' emergency, which left her day free apart from two bookings she had to cover at work.

'I think you're starting to take advantage of your discount young lady' said Shannon, reaching down to give Claire a hug and kiss on the cheek while Chloe added a second pin up to the outer side of her leg.

'Well if you will employ artists as good as her' she replied, pointing at Chloe who looked up and smiled a tired looking smile. Shannon gave her a grin and a very quick wink before leaving them to it to go and talk to Kerry. He knew why she was so exhausted of course; he was the reason for it after all.

'So what time do you fly out reject?' Claire called across the shop. He was flying out to Arizona for a match that would be held the following night, with Matt there too but sadly no Jeff since he had been having knee troubles and been told to rest from fighting for three weeks.

'About two hours. I just gotta go home and get my stuff then I'm heading off' he replied. Hearing that made Chloe's heart thud a little sadly in her chest, knowing it would be Wednesday before she'd see him again. She could hardly believe the kind of effect he was having on her already, but at the same time it made her excited.

She hadn't been shown that kind of attention from a man for years, and now it seemed that Shannon was willing for it to happen on a regular basis (she couldn't think any differently after he was so keen to have her stay the night) she wouldn't have to miss it any longer. But still, below everything happy her head incarnated about the illicit union she shared with her boss she knew it was wrong.

So once again, rather than letting herself be bogged down by the guilt she felt raging inside her head she sat and listened to someone else's words, hearing all about how Claire had obtained a very interesting looking scar on her knee she'd noticed while inking her leg.

'I got that being catapulted off a young horse I was breaking in. He managed to buck me off straight into a barb wired fence and it tore a nice chunk out of the side of my knee' she replied, remembering the event only too well since it had taken her and Jeff the best part of an hour to catch the little monster again after he'd sent her to the floor.

'You train horses?' said Chloe, stopping her work and looking up with a smile. She'd always loved horses from an early age, but seemed never to have enough time to look after one of her own.

'Yeah that's what I do for a living. I buy youngsters in as 2 years old, break them in and train them up and then sell them on again. And I also train badly behaved ones too, that's where the real money comes in. People will pay a fortune for you to risk your neck rather than theirs in making their animals behave properly' she laughed.

'Wow, you lucky thing! What a cool job!' she exclaimed, going back to adding the finishing touches of that particular session which was just the outline. Claire didn't want to take the pain of another two hour sitting so had decided to book it in two stages; no matter how much Shannon teased her for it and called her a wuss.

'Yeah and like your job isn't lady!' Claire commented with a snort of laughter.

'Okay, we're even!' she replied. 'And if you wouldn't mind I'd really love to come and see you do your work some time. I find it fascinating watching how you really advanced horse people just make it all look so easy' she then added, moving her needle down to finish the very last of the black outline.

'Well, you have this afternoon off don't you? Why not come back with me now? Just follow me, we're only just off Highway 59 so it isn't too far out' said Claire. Chloe accepted the invite, glad she had something to do after all rather than go home to an empty house and potter around. Saturday was always the day Mike went to play golf with his father so she was going to have some company, and get to see some very fine specimens of her favourite animals too. But before she went off with Claire, there was another animal she had to set her sights on before they left.

She went to go and collect her stuff from the back of the shop, and as predicted heard the door close five seconds after she'd walked in, and two very strong arms wrap around her waist.

'Give me something to keep me going until Wednesday then' he said, turning her in his arms and giving her a huge cute smile.

'Come here then' she purred, linking her arms around his neck and pulling him down to her level to kiss him softly at first, then opening her mouth to allow his tongue to push against hers, a happy grumble echoing his throat while his hands slid down to cup her buttocks.

'I wish I could take you too' he said once their kiss had broken.

'Anyway, Mrs Hardy hates to be kept waiting, so off you go. Enjoy your weekend and I'll see ya next week' he added, kissing her cheek a few times and letting her go, albeit reluctantly.

'And you, good luck with the match' she said, pulling her jacket on and kissing his cheek before she walked around him and back out to the front of the shop to meet Claire, who was waiting outside in her car all ready to get moving.

'What did the doctor tell you? No heavy exercise!' shouted Claire half an hour later as she and Chloe walked onto the small stable yard at the back of her home and witnessed Jeff sat atop her big Chestnut coloured horse Obie.

'He looked bored and so was I, don't worry I only took him for a walk around the fields babe, nothing excessive' he said, sliding down off Obie's back and handing the reins to his wife, who was giving him what he referred to as 'the eyebrow'.

'You'd have been fucked if he'd have tried to throw you off' she said, her one eyebrow still cocked high.

'Yeah but he's a good boy, his mommy trained him too well' he said, giving Obie a pat on the neck.

'I guess you have a point' she said, pretending to shine an imaginary medal on her shirt as her husband just laughed and gave her a hug and kiss.

'I'll leave you ladies to it, and Chloe if she tries to make you de-shit any stables just send her to me and I'll slap her for you' he joked, watching the girls being to walk away over to Obie's stable.

'I can manage that myself dude' she said, reaching behind and giving Claire a little slap on the butt. They had struck up the kind of new friendship that allowed her to be able to joke like that with Jeff's wife, and in turn Claire felt they were comfortable enough around each other to be able to notice and speak of a few things regarding Chloe too. Guessing by the state of his coat Jeff hadn't bothered grooming him before he took him out Claire stood in Obie's stable giving him the mother of all grooms (she liked her horses to look neat and tidy at all times), while Chloe sat on an upturned bucket in the corner looking at her phone.

'Who's that text from that's making you smile so much then gal?' asked Claire, bending to take her vigorous brushing down to Obie's muscular legs.

'Shannon' she replied somewhat dreamily, and then tried to cover it up with a stuttered sentence of 'oh he just sent me a joke is all'.

'Honey, I know. Don't be mad at him but he told us what happened between you' said Claire, holding up her hand to make her nervous looking new friend stop gabbling.

'And being a married woman yourself I bet you think I'm the lowest of the low huh? I know it's wrong though Claire' said Chloe, sighing.

'Okay hold it right there! I don't ever judge people like that, not before I know of the whys and the wherefores of that situation. And something tells me, call it intuition or whatever, that you wouldn't have had sex with Shannon if your marriage was a happy one' she said, firmly at first and then very gently towards the end, looking at her with sympathy filled sky blue eyes. 'So if you wanna talk to me about it while I get handsome here all smart again, feel free. I'm all ears' she said, turning back to Obie and starting to brush his round tummy and back.

'Are you sure?' she asked.

'Positive. Hell Shannon uses me as an agony aunt, why shouldn't you too?' she chuckled, smiling widely.

'Well, okay then but I'll give you a condensed version. Mike and I were high school sweethearts but we broke up when he moved out of state for college, and then four years ago we met up again unexpectedly, ended up getting back together and a year later we got married. I think that's when the trouble started. Our sex life went downhill, and so far it's yet to come back up that hill again, and the way he spoke to me and acted around me changed. He never shows any kind of pride towards me, or encouragement. He's fiercely jealous of my friends, Kerry especially as you well know and on some days I do honestly wonder why I married him, but then on occasions he'll say or do something so sweet that I wonder what I'd do without him' began Chloe, picking up a piece of straw from Odin's freshly made bed and spinning it in around in her fingers.

'He only says and does sweet things for you on occasions?' asked Claire, clicking her tongue and gently moving Obie over to start brushing the other side of his huge frame.

'Yeah, but that's the way it is when you're married isn't it?' she replied, watching Claire's head pop up over Obie's back and shake from side to side.

'Jeff says sweet things to me every day. And he does lots of things that make me go 'awwwww' on a regular basis too. We put a lot of effort into our marriage, effort that seems to be only one sided in yours from what you've told me so far' she replied, her head disappearing behind her horse once more.

'So what does he say and do then?' Asked Chloe, interested.

'Well, every morning as soon as we're awake he tells me he loves me and then asks what I've dreamt about. And then if he hasn't got anything else on he comes and helps me get the horses in from the field and get them fed, and then usually brings me breakfast down to the yard so I can eat while I work. He's great like that, I'm not a massive eater and it does worry him so he always makes sure I'm fed regularly. And then there are the times he surprises me in such silly but such romantic ways. Like one afternoon last week I came back from getting the groceries and there was a one rose and a trail of petals across the floor with a note saying 'follow the trail if you wanna find the rest'. The trail ended at the bedroom door and when I opened it up he was lying there naked with the rest of the roses covering his crotch and one between his teeth with a massive grin on his face!' said Claire, her face all lit up as she laughed.

'Oh my god I bet you died laughing!' exclaimed Chloe.

'I did, and then I carefully removed the roses and jumped on him' said Claire, her head popping back up again to pull a silly grin.

'You see, you two are just so fucking perfect. You still love each other as much as you did the day you got married, you respect each other, you have a sex life! All the things I feel I'm lacking with Mike' she signed, letting the piece of straw fall from between her fingers back into the bed at her feet.

'Chloe, we really ain't perfect! Ohhhhh hell noooooooo! When we row at each other it's fucking ugly for one thing, it doesn't happen on a regular basis anymore but it did when we were first married, I nearly walked out on him after only eleven months! But we worked through it because at the end of the day, we really love each other and don't want to spend the rest of our lives with anyone else. If you want a marriage to work it has to be equal amounts of input from the both of you if you ask me' said Claire, gently brushing Obie's face and ears.

'See there's the thing. It's always me! Me who instigates sex, and half the time gets turned down. No that isn't fair, more than half the time, that's more like it. And he always likes to make me feel crap about myself rather than compliment me, and like I said just a few minutes ago the way he's so threatened by my friends just drives me nuts!' said Chloe, looking as frustrated as her words sounded.

'Shit sweetie, you're really unhappy aren't you?' she replied, setting the brush down atop the stable door and crouching in front of Chloe, giving her a hug when she started to quietly cry.

'I'm sorry, it's just............................oh everything's just a mess! And I don't feel like I've known you long enough to be doing this, crying in your arms' she sobbed, feeling her hair being stroked.

'Hey, if you're gunna cry I'm gunna hug you! No two ways about it, so what if you've only known me for a month? I don't care, you're my friend' she said with a big smile, touching her fist to Chloe's chin gently and making her laugh.

'Thank you, you're a really sweet person' said Chloe, reaching out and kissing her cheek.

'I like to think so, anyway I have two horses to exercise this morning, howdya fancy giving me a hand? You can ride right?' Claire asked, extending her hands to pull her up off the bucket.

'Yes I can, but are they crazy ones? I haven't been in the saddle in years so I don't think I could cope with anything that isn't well behaved!' she asked a little nervously.

'One is, but I'll ride him. The other one is like a lamb, I'll cry when her new owners come and pick her up too, she's a special girl' said Claire, already dreading the day two weeks from then when Gracie would be taken to her new home.

'Okay let's go' said Chloe, linking her arm through Claire's as they left Obie in peace to eat his hay and continue their conversation as they rode around the fast expanse of land surrounding the Hardy property.


	12. Chapter 12 Pushing me away

'I still can't believe you had that fucking thing done you know. You almost look butch now' said Mike the following Wednesday as he sat at the other end of the couch to Chloe and watched her studying her face in the mirror and then taking a closer look at her new James Dean tattoo. She closed her eyes and tried to pretend he hadn't said anything, even though bitchy comments were his forte she knew this time something else had pissed him off and he was spoiling for a fight.

'Did you hear me?' he said, taking off his glasses and turning to face her head on.

'Yes Michael, I heard you loud and clear' she sighed, looking back into the mirror and continuing to check for any blemishes.

'Don't call me Michael, you know how much it pisses me off' he said in a condescending tone.

'Okay so what the hell is your problem?' she said, slamming the mirror down into her lap and shifting to face him.

'The fact I'm losing my wife to a canvass of ink is what my problem is! Chloe you are a gorgeous woman who's making herself look more and more ugly with every bit of flesh toned skin she covers up with some dumbass picture!' he cried, holding his hands in the air.

'I really don't know how many more times I can go over this with you. I love tattoos, they're my life. This is who I am Mike, and it was who I was when you married me too, I can't change now!' she said, beginning to feel really prickled. Why did he have to do this?

'No but you can stop! That many, it's just repulsive' he snapped back.

'Okay so you want me to change who I am for you, even though you were fine with it when we got together?' she fired back with.

'I don't see it too much to ask for you to just respect my wishes for once and stop having more and more tattoos! God what the hell is wrong with you woman?' he shouted, looking completely exasperated. That was it, of all the things he could have said, he though she was the one with the problem.

'I'm going out, don't bother waiting up' she said, hauling herself up off the couch and grabbing her bag before tearing a path out of there as quickly as she could. Mike didn't even ask where she was going.

'Hello sexy girl' said Shannon happily as he lay on his couch. He'd been hoping she'd call.

'Hey you, what time did you land in the end?' she asked as she drove along.

'About two hours ago, I got in, flopped on the couch and haven't moved yet' he said with a small laugh. His flight home from Arizona had been delayed by eight hours, meaning he hadn't arrived home at 7am that morning as expected.

'How do you fancy sharing that couch with someone else?' she asked, really hoping his answer would be yes since she was just half a block from his house.

'That depends on who I'm sharing with. If it's Richard Nixon then I'd say no. It's not him is it?' he joked, laughing through his nose.

'He's dead dude' Chloe replied.

'Then I definitely hope it ain't him!' he said.

'Well if you wanna find out maybe you should go and open your front door in about ten seconds' said Chloe, shutting her car door softly and walking up the drive.

'Alright' he said, hanging up his cell. He heaved his slightly sore body up off the couch and walked to the door, opening it to find what he'd missed looking at so much for the last three days; Chloe.

'I am not a crook!' she said, doing her best Nixon impersonation and holding her fingers out above her head in the victory V's. Shannon just laughed and hauled her into the house, his mouth covering hers as soon as the door was shut.

'Is it crazy to say I've missed you?' he asked, picking her up and carrying her through to the lounge to sit back down on the couch with her on his lap.

'Nope, I missed you too' she replied, kissing his cheek and stroking his hair away from his face.

'So is this just a flying visit, or do I have you for longer?' he then asked, hand rubbing her thigh through the black cord jeans she was wearing.

'How about............................until tomorrow morning' she said, pausing in her sentence to stop and kiss him. He raised an eyebrow, looking more pleased to see her by the second.

'I hate to mention it, but won't Mike get suss?' he asked, a small frown creasing his otherwise happy face as he lay back and swung his legs up on the end of the couch, still holding Chloe close.

'I doubt he cares where I am to be honest. We had a fight, so I decided I wanted to spend my evening with a man who finds my ink sexy and not 'repulsive' as he worded it' she said, hurt flashing through her eyes Shannon was quick to pick up on.

'He said that to you? Asshole' he grumbled, tightening his arms around her and kissing her head. It almost made her feel scared, the level of affection they'd been very quick to slip into, but she couldn't deny that on the flipside of the coin that was her fear, she liked it too. She couldn't remember the last time she had laid with Mike like that.

'Anyway mister, I really don't wanna talk about him anymore' she said, hand sliding up under his t shirt and fingertips brushing his nipple, feeling it spring hard almost instantly.

'Good. But one thing, you gotta be gentle with me. I'm quite literally the sore loser' he said in reference to the match.

'I promise. So can I take you to bed then? Or do you have ideas for fun on the couch?' she asked, running her fingers through his soft hair.

'Bed please. The couch can take a battering when I can move around on it a little easier' he said as she stood up and unzipped her boots, kicking them off from out of her jeans and feeling his arms snake around her waist and his hand move her hair to kiss her neck as he walked along behind her. Once upstairs she lay him down on the bed, sitting astride his legs while he unbuttoned her shirt and peeled it from her body, pulling her down to him and looking at her for a few moments before smiling widely and kissing her.

It may have started off slow, but as soon as Chloe reached around and unclipped her bra to free her breasts into his waiting hands it began to become more frantic, like some hidden release button on their desperate pent up lust for one another's touch had just been pressed. Their mouths parted for a few moments so she could pull off his t shirt, re connecting with urgency as their bare skin was reunited and she felt herself being turned onto her back. His lips didn't leave hers as she felt his hands running down her sides, taking his weight off her and onto his knees as he knelt between her legs and removed her jeans and underwear at lightning speed.

'Your turn, I want you naked too' she said, making a grab for his belt but having her hands removed.

'Nope' he said.

'Then I'll have to overpower you then' she said, trying once more to slide her hands down and get hold of his jeans.

'Not gunna happen when you're half the size of me' he said, taking both of her small wrists in one hand and holding them over her head, then pressing his knees down on each thigh so she was pinned completely.

'Get outta that one' he said, laughing as she pulled a dark face.

'I can't, but you know something tells me I'm not going to want to though' she replied with a naughty grin.

'Hmmmm, yeah I'd say that was a pretty fair assumption' he said, moving his knees off her thighs and using them to part her legs wider before completely blanketing her body with his, mouth crashing to hers as he let go of her hands and felt them reach around and stroke his back. His mouth finally left hers to travel across her neck to her ear, teeth grazing the lobe as he bit it softly, then kissed behind it and all around her neck until he got to the other and repeated the action, knowing that her earlobes and that little soft patch of skin just behind each ear were two spots that reacted well to the touch of a tongue or finger, or if he just gently blew over them he could render her into a quivering mess on the bed.

'Repulsive my fucking ass' he thought, kissing the detailed mehndi tattoos she had surrounding her breasts, giving all the non obvious areas of arousal repeated and in depth attention before his mouth descended over her nipple, hand running down over her hip and dipping between her legs which sprung open wider instantly when she felt his hand there, fingers opening her up to his touch as he passed a fingertip over her clit, tongue now running flat against her stomach.

'God fucking damn, you have no idea what you fucking do to me' she moaned, body shaking underneath him as his fingers invaded her and pushed against her insides deeply whilst licking the rise of her hip.

'Yeah I do' he said, pulling out a pair of fluid coated fingers and sucking them before sliding them back in, hearing her moan appreciatively, her hands running through his hair. She felt him start to use his thumb against her clit, rubbing it softly around and around in perfect rhythm with the thrust of his fingers into her core, mouth now kissing a line from the outside to the inside of her thighs, his tongue occasionally darting out between his lips to flick across her hot flesh, the sounds of her content purrs and moans fuelling his own desire to the point where all he wanted to do was pull his burning erection free from his jeans and bury it into her, but he resisted the strong temptation and instead decided to bury another part of his anatomy inside her smouldering wetness; his tongue.

Using it just to circle her opening at first, thumb still at her nub he stretched it as far he could inside her pussy, feeling the contractions of her muscles locking around it. It was the kind of sensation that made the lust coursing through his body begin to fight against him for release, his cock straining hard against his jeans impatiently. He moved his thumb away and used his tongue to continue the stimulation, rolling it around in circles across the very tip before making his tongue flat and rubbing it hard up and down as she cried out in bliss, the tingles of orgasm beginning to mount up, knowing just a few more minutes of feeling his tongue massaging the most sensitive spot on her whole body would tip her over the edge.

'Sorry, but if I don't fuck you now I think I'll do myself damage' he said, sitting up and removing his clothing quickly, coming back to her and pushing her knees right up against her chest as his weight lend against the back of her legs and his tongue entwined with hers, sinking his hardness into her and feeling himself sheathed to the hilt.

'You know that's a myth right? You're just being impatient' she laughed softly, her face then contorting to match the pleasure she  
felt at the head of his cock pressing her g spot.

'I don't think I can be blamed for that, not when you take into account how fucking sexy the woman I'm with is' he said, winking at her. 'Now, shut up and let me fuck you' he added, mouth once again reconnected to hers as their bodies moved against each other, Chloe matching each movement Shannon made inside her with a rise or fall of her hips, every breath she breathed coming out in something that sounded halfway between a purr and a growl, her beautiful eyes looking up at him with dilated pupils.

She just couldn't get enough of him, the way she felt when she was having sex with him made her feel more alive than anything she had ever participated in with a man before, Mike didn't even measure up to the man currently pulling her legs back over his shoulders and giving her every last inch of his cock in hard fast slams, his breathing low and raspy as he stared down at her and mouthed 'you're so fucking hot' with a smile on his face, her hands running all over his perfect body as she lifted her hips to meet each blow battered into her pussy which if anything only seemed to suck him in deeper, hugging around his hardness tightly before going into spasm as she started to cum, his own release still eluding him much to his satisfaction.

'God you look so gorgeous when you cum' he panted, head coming back down to kiss her while his fingers stroked her legs, feeling her still tensing and relaxing around his hardness as he slowed the pace momentarily before building the rhythm back up again, his head completely lost of all thought other than how good it felt to be inside her, and how he knew this kind of satisfaction only came when you actually gave a damn about the person you shared it with.

Anything else his mind may have cared to add to that was obliterated as he got pulled into what felt like another realm as he came, the orgasm that rushed at speed up from his cock and flooded his whole body, hitting him so hard he was completely merciless with her, his body completely raging as he pumped out every last wave of orgasm as he grunted with effort and closed his eyes tightly before collapsing on top of her.

It was as she lay asleep with her head resting on his shoulder that Shannon began to think upon the realization that had hit him moments before he came earlier. Lying there watching 3am roll around with Chloe sleeping soundly next to him he thought upon one thing over and over; how much he liked having her there. Which lead to another thought, like a link on the same chain that was the affair they had effortlessly slipped into, and that thought was that he wished it was real, that the woman he held in his arms was all his.

A week it may have been, but he knew the real thing when he felt it, and he knew the feelings that he was developing for Chloe her real. He really liked her, and the fact that she was another man's wife was starting to cut him deep, especially when that man didn't deserve a wife as wonderful as her, something he would judge for the first time with his own eyes just two weeks later when he would meet Mike Daniels for the first time.


	13. Chapter 13 Partying with the enemy

'So he's definitely going to be here then?' asked Shannon as he watched Claire adding ice cubes to the sink, where she intended to keep as many bottles as she could, the fridge being full to capacity already with the high volume of liquor Matt had brought with him.

'Sadly, yes. I thought I was asking her in an empty house when I dropped her home the other day, but he was there so there wasn't anything I could do to back out of the invite really. Sorry honey' she said, wincing slightly.

'Meh, it's my problem. I just gotta live with it' he replied with a shrug, holding his hand out for the tennis ball Odin brought back to him for the umpteenth time and throwing it out down the hallway for him again, the thunder of claws skating across the laminate floor of the kitchen as he went to retrieve his toy.

'Well, I hate to point out the obvious, but if you are going to fool around with a married lady' she said quietly, coming over to where he was sat to keep the discussion on the down low in case anyone from the other room heard.

'That's the thing though C, as far as I'm concerned it isn't just sex, I really like her. And I know, you and Jeff warned me endlessly about this, but shit I just couldn't help it. There she was, my perfect woman right in front of me. I just couldn't say no' he sighed.

'Awwwww sweetie' she said, putting her arms around him from where she stood behind him and kissing his head through the black backwards cap he wore. She hated seeing her little reject hurting, and knew he was right at that moment. Outside he gave the impression of being a fly by the seat of his pants kinda guy, always loud and happy and excited, but inside he was just like her; a sensitive soul who just wanted someone to devote his affections to. And now he'd found her, he didn't want to let go.

'Can I make a suggestion?' she asked.

'Shoot' he said, turning around and doing his cute thing of hugging her and resting his head on her boobs, looking forlorn.

'Cheer yourself up before people get suspicious as to why you're walking around with a face like a smacked arse, and when the moment is right tell Chloe how you feel. You never know, you might be the very thing she's been looking for to take her away from the hell that is her marriage' said Claire, giving his shoulder a rub and pushing him gently from her embrace to welcome her best friend Tina into the kitchen.

'GIRLFRIEND!' shouted Tina, a mass of gold jewellery and bright red hair extensions coming at her for a hug.

'Hey gorgeous' she said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

'Hey T' said Shannon, standing up to give the tall Jamaican girl a hug and a kiss.

'And what's wrong with your face?' she asked, holding it between her hands and pushing his cheeks together until he looks completely squashed up. He battered her hands away and laughed softly through his nose.

'Woman issues, and that's about as much as I wanna say on it' he replied. Tina made a face at Claire while Shannon slid off the high stool and picked up another bottle of beer on his way out into the lounge.

'He'll be okay' she said, answering her friends questioning expression before pouring her a drink. And if he wasn't, he'd soon find out he'd have to be when Chloe and Mike arrived. Luckily he was in higher spirits when they did enter the house courtesy of some banter between himself, Jeff and Andrew for the ever present camera filming for The Hardy Show. But as soon as met Mike, he wasn't particularly impressed. And as for Mike, it was like Kerry all over again but a thousand times worse. Standing in front of him was the kind of guy no husband wanted their wife working for, one that happened to be attractive with a body like a Greek god, and also one who seemed to get on like a house on fire with the aforementioned lady who had just let go of his hand to hug her boss.

'I'm sorry he's here' she whispered into his ear as she leant into the hug as much as she dared. Hugging the man she was sleeping with behind her husband's back right in front of him was something she had to do very quickly, and check herself constantly to make sure she gave away no signs or flirty gestures.

'So Mike, how does it feel to be married to someone as amazingly talented as Chloe?' Asked Jeff as he came over and gave her a kiss.

'Her tattooing doesn't come into it. I'm with her for her, not what she does' he said a little dryly, putting his arm around her and kissing her temple. She wasn't touched by the little display of affection, she knew he was doing it because he was threatened as hell around her new friends, most of whom where twice the size of him. Even Claire's muscles were bigger than his.

'That's cute, I think' said Jeff, adding the last part under his breath. It would turn out to be the only half decent thing Mike would say all night, when he wasn't standing by Chloe's side he was doing his best to be as antisocial as possible.

'Do you think he ever smiles? Or does he just stand there and pose like he's in a fucking Calvin Klein ad all night? Sure, he's good looking, but shit he has the warmth of a snow peak! He makes George Bush look like Mick Jagger' said Claire as she leant back against Jeff in the lounge, looking into the kitchen where Chloe was talking to Shannon and Matt and Mike was standing behind her looking mildly thunderous.

'I think he needs to get over himself and lighten the fuck up! I mean look at the dude now, he's just staring right at the back of Chloe's head looking like he really don't wanna be here' replied Jeff, circling his arms around his wife's waist and kissing her cheek. They stayed like that long enough for Chloe to notice when she and Mike walked back into the room ten minutes later, smiling over at them and wishing her own set up could have been as happy as theirs.

Watching how Claire turned in his arms and poked a fingernail into his chest to enthuse a point she was trying to make, while he just leant right down to her level and pulled a stupid face before kissing her as she laughed. Mike had never smiled at her the way Jeff smiled at Claire, that look of complete and utter adoration was one she had never witnessed in her marriage, and day by day as she saw how other people in relationships were with each other, and how she felt when she was with Shannon, she knew what she had was broken. What the hell was still holding them together she just didn't know.

'Awwwww, look how cute they are' she said, waving at Claire as she was swung backwards in her husband's huge arms.

'I don't know why they just don't hump on the floor right in front of us' said Mike, watching them with distaste.

'It is their house sweetie, I think if they're allowed to be affectionate towards one another anywhere then it's here! Don't be such a sourpuss! Come here gimmie a kiss' she said, hooking her arm around his neck and making a move to kiss his cheek just to be pushed away.

'You're drunk already. Great, bang goes my evening' he said, walking away from her and towards the big window in the lounge that lead onto the decking at the back of the house. Looking around to see people had noticed him rebuff her attention so strongly Chloe felt embarrassed, and walked out into the hallway and through the front door. She needed fresh air and since Mike had taken the back of the house she chose to go around to the side, walking down the small cobblestone path that lead to the main strip of concrete leading to the stable yard.

'Hey Obie, hey handsome boy' said Chloe softly, turning on the old fashioned lantern style light outside his stable, watching his huge brown eyes blink to adjust to it as he made a happy noise in his throat and walked over through his thick straw bed to the front of the box. He gave her a cautionary sniff and attempted to eat her hair before snorting and shaking his head, which then suddenly darted up as his eyes were attracted to another person moving through the almost darkness of the yard into the light from the front of his stable.

'Come to see big red huh?' said Shannon, holding out a miniature chocolate muffin on his hand for Obie who ate it back at once and then pulled a funny face, curling his top lip high and sticking his head in the air.

'Shhhh, don't tell Claire I gave him that or she'll kill me' he was quick to add, reaching up to pat Obie's neck.

'Your secrets safe with me' she said, scratching Obie's muzzle as he licked her fingers and tried to drink her vodka martini.

'And keep that away from him, he has a taste for alcohol. Claire still hasn't forgiven Jeff for accidentally getting him drunk' he said, making Chloe snort with laughter.

'How the hell did that happen?' she asked, curious as hell to know.

'He rode him down to the legend's one time and was sitting outside having a beer when Obie knocked it over, and drank half of it up again. Jeff didn't think an animal his size would be affected by it, but fuck me half an hour later he was going crazy! It took two hours for us to get him home, with me and Matt on either end of a rope around his ass to pull him forwards, and Jeff leading him to make him walk in a straight line back home because he just kept jumping around and going insane! I've never seen Claire that mad in the whole of my life!' laughed Shannon, reaching up and giving Obie's ears a squeeze and a scratch.

'I bet she saw the funny side eventually though right?' said Chloe, still laughing as she imagined them trying to haul a drunken horse along the road.

'After about two months yeah' he admitted, leaning over the stable door with his arms folded when Obie retreated to lie down and roll in his bed.

'So how come you're down here by yourself then? Does it have anything to do with the fact Mike's treating you like crap? Now I've seen it with my own eyes I have to say, how the hell do you put up with being treated like that?' he asked, moving himself so she could lean against the door next to him, watching Obie kicking his legs around as he rolled.

'I'm really starting to wonder that myself you know. But even taking into consideration how he is, there's a part of me that still loves him' she said, sighing.

'Don't think I'm saying this because of what's happening with us two, but shouldn't it be the whole of you that loves him and not just a certain part?' he asked, turning his head to the side, watching her take in what he had just said and mull it over for a few seconds, almost like she was wrestling internally with her answer. What he didn't know was that his words had made something inside her head click, some voice break forth and speak 'You know it's not enough anymore' to her. And just as she was about to answer, she heard the man himself.

'Chloe? What are you doing down here?' he asked, walking towards them.

'Just thought I'd come and se Obie, turns out boss man had the same idea' she said casually, surprised at her level of coolness considering Shannon's words had set about a chain of such serious thought in her head.

'Oh, right. I see. Couldn't wait to get away from me huh?' he said, drawing up in front of them. Anything Chloe might have said in response was interrupted by the sound of Obie squealing and lunging over his stable door with his mouth open and ear laid flat in anger.

'Hey steady dude!' said Shannon, pushing his hands into his neck and moving him back.

'Shit that's one evil fucking horse!' Mike said, startled as hell that his face had been inches from a huge set of teeth.

'You're the only person he's ever done that to, he's friendly as hell' said Shannon, opening the stable door and letting himself in to try and settle a visibly pissed off Obie.

'And she calls herself a horse trainer' he muttered under his breath, grabbing Chloe's hand and pulling her away back to the house.

'See, even you know he's an asshole huh Obes?' said Shannon, glaring at the back of Mike's head as he walked away with a reluctant looking Chloe.

'Why do you have to be so fucking rude?' hissed Chloe as they walked back across the cobblestone path.

'I'm being truthful, if that's the fruit of her labour then she isn't much of an equine expert' he sniffed, reaching into his pocket for his cigarettes.

'One of the colts she broke in came third in the Kentucky Derby last year, that ain't a bad achievement for a one woman outfit now is it?' She replied, feeling herself grow colder and colder to his presence by the moment.

'Still didn't win though did it?' he replied, lighting up and offering one to her she declined.

'You know something Michael, you have got to be the most mean spirited son of a bitch I have ever fucking met. You're just so goddamned jealous of anyone out there having a better life than you do, anyone who does something that truly makes them happy. All because you got yourself stuck in the family profession instead of having the balls to go out there and do what the fuck you wanted to!' she snapped, pointing her finger at him as she scowled.

'Who the fuck do you think you are to speak to me like that?' he said incredulously.

'Someone who has had more than enough of you making snide comments about her friends, who you don't know shit about!' she shouted, her temper rising to the brink of over boiling.

'And don't want to by going on what I've seen so far, bunch of immature idiots' he muttered, drawing fiercely on his smoke.

'Mike, it's a party. People are having fun, something I suggest you try doing. Except no fucking where near here. Get a cab, you aren't wanted here' she said, pulling a twenty dollar bill from her pocket and flicking it at him, knowing how much it would piss him off.

'Don't expect the door to be open to you at whatever time you decide you wanna roll through it' he snapped angrily, gritting his teeth with his mouth closed, lips pursed.

'I don't remember saying anything about coming home tonight' she called back over her shoulder, her face a picture of disgust at not how much of an asshole he could be, but how much of an asshole he'd turned into. She walked back into the house and explained the situation to Jeff and Claire, who understood and told her gently they were kind of pleased he was gone. It seemed her friends new and old had got the measure of Mike way before she had, even Obie's reaction had made her think; animals did have a sixth sense after all.

She decided to grab a drink and head out the back to sit by herself for a while, pleased that all the other party goers where inside so she could begin to process some of the thoughts about what had occurred in the last half an hour. Her husband was becoming impossible to live with, this much was true. But did that really mean the end of the road for them? Was it just a phase he was going through? She had taken her marriage vows seriously when she spoke them three years previously, but now was finding them hard to adhere to; especially the one about forsaking all others.

Because then there was Shannon, and she knew there was something there that ran deeper than sex, something that if she began to scratch the surface of knew she would just keep finding more and more things about him that pulled her in. And as if the thought of him had acted as some kind of invocation he appeared by her side, sitting down on the edge of the decking and reaching for her hand, pulling it between his onto his lap and leaning over to kiss her cheek.

'I've wanted to do that all night' he said, squeezing her hand.

'I've wanted you to too' she replied, turning to kiss him again. This time on the lips, which is something she'd wanted way more.


	14. Chapter 14 No longer casual

'I hate seeing you so unhappy. Everything else aside, you're still my friend as well as my...........' Shannon trailed off, not really knowing what else to refer to her as.

'As well as the woman you have casual sex with' she finished for him, lighting a cigarette and offering one to him.

'See there's the thing, for me........................it's starting to not become casual from my point of view. In an ideal world I'd be dating you right now' he replied. 'And I'm sorry if hearing that causes problems for you, but I gotta be honest, I do really like you Chloe. Well, at least what I know so far. I'd like to get to know you much better than I do now' he then admitted. It seemed to her that from his point of view, he'd already started to scratch the surface. And instead of throwing any more words of hopelessness out into the air over her marital situation, she decided to embrace her extra marital one instead.

'So, whaddya wanna know then Mr Moore? You said you wanted to get to know me better, so ask away' she said, turning to him and shivering slightly, then smiling as he took off his hoodie and wrapped it around her, burying her in the grey fabric.

'What, like twenty questions?' he offered, smiling as he blew smoke through his nose.

'If you like' she replied, taking a sip of her Jack and coke. And so he did, he sat and asked anything that came into his head that he wanted to learn about her.

'Okay let's start with the basics, favourite film?' he asked.

'The Green Mile, I swear I cry my eyes out every time I see it, but I love it!' she replied.

'Favourite colour?'

'Yellow'

'Favourite food, other than chocolate which we all know you have an addiction to!'

'Hey that's a woman's right! But other than that, sushi'

'Favourite actor or actress?'

'James Dean and Bette Davies'

'Favourite band?'

'White Zombie, but you knew that!'

'Just thought I'd make sure. Errrrrrrrrrrrrrm, what else do I wanna know then? Earliest memory?' he asked, turning around and sitting cross legged to face her, Chloe doing the same.

'Sitting on the handle bars of my dad's chopper when I was three, pulling my Uncle David's beard! He's had a ZZ Top style beard for as long as I remember and when I was a baby I used to chew it, pull it, try and stick it up my nose, I was obsessed!' she laughed, seeing him chuckling softly too.

'That's real cute; I think stuff like that really is fascinating when you're young. When I was little I could never get over the fact Grandpa had hair coming out of his ears! Anyway onto the next question, which out of all your tattoos means the most to you?' he then said, hand creeping up into her jeans and stroking her leg.

'They all mean something to me, and I really hate choosing favourites but the ones that mean the most to me are the 'mamma and papa' ones, the Elizabeth and Baby Doll ones, the scroll with my friends names, and the pistols on my back. They're in tribute to my great, great grandfather; he was a General in the Confederate army and died on the battlefield with the very same pistols in his hands. I have so much respect for him, that he went down fighting for what he believed in, to protect the Confederate states. From what we researched about him, he was hard as nails and fiercely proud to be Texan, just like me' she said, smiling with pride.

'Wow, that's some special history you have in your family. He sounds like he was a great man' replied Shannon, amazed by the story. Hearing of how brave men fought for their rights or country always touched him; he didn't know if he could ever be that brave and had a hell of a lot of respect for those who were.

'He really was, he's even been written about by historians for school textbooks and the like. I find it so amazing that kids today are learning about someone from my own family. General Albert Waterstone of the 6th Texas cavalry, I salute you sir' she said, looking up and aiming her salute to the sky with a smile on her face. 'So, what else do you have to ask?' she added as she looked back at Shannon.

'How'd you get so amazing?' he said simply, reaching forward and kissing her softly.

'I was born this way' she giggled, before kissing him again. And so they continued to sit and enjoy the night air, Chloe still answering the endless list of questions Shannon put to her, and in turn asking some of her own to him as well. And in those forty minutes they were sat there, they learned more about each other than in the nine weeks they had been acquainted for; and for both it felt good. They felt like they had a hell of a lot more common ground than previously thought, shared a lot of the same beliefs and opinions on the world around them, and in general were two very well matched people.

'I suppose we better get back before we're missed' he said, getting to his feet and pulling Chloe up with him.

'Yeah, sounds a good idea. But before we do, knock me a little kiss' she said, pulling a comic kissy face at him.

'Nope, sorry' he said, making her pull a questioning face. 'I don't give little kisses to women as beautiful as you' he then said, pulling her into his arms and giving her the kind of kiss that threatened to make her knees buckle. After separating themselves they walked back into the house to find the party still in full swing, with Jeff and Claire doing tequila shots whilst also throwing salt and lemon slices at each other.

'Where you been assheads?' Claire demanded as soon as she saw them appear again.

'Talking about he who cannot me named' said Chloe. It was half right at least, but for the benefit of the people who didn't know of her and Shannon she kept the rest to herself.

'Ahhhh, well let's forget about Mr Moody, c'mon Chloe I know you're partial to the Mexican stuff, get that down your neck. And for the non Tequila drinker, here you are!' said Claire, slightly slurred as she passed Chloe a shot and Shannon a bottle of Absinthe.

'Oh no, not after last time!' he said, pushing her bottle away.

'What happened last time?' asked Chloe, before downing the shot and then pulling a face as it burned her throat.

'He got so wasted he passed out on the couch, and dear little Jack took it upon himself to hump his head!' she replied, hearing Jeff burst out a huge guffaw of laughter from across the kitchen.

'Yeah and if it happens again I don't fancy my chances against something the size of Odin!' he said, eyes wide as he pointed at the huge Husky currently 'dancing' with Matt. Matt was dancing alright, but Odin was making slightly disgruntled noises as his paws were held and he was made to walk on his hind legs, contradicted by the fact he was wagging his tail he must have been happy on some level, or just amused at his drunken 'Uncle Matt' dancing around to 'Molly's Chambers' by Kings of Leon. And singing out of tune too.

'Dude stop torturing our son!' she shouted as Matt danced Odin into the kitchen.

'Just another girl that wants to rule the world, any time or place. And when she gets into your head, you know she's there to stay' he roared along with the song, making everyone laugh and Odin continue to nibble his knuckles as his tail wagged in frenzy. Shannon couldn't help but identify with the last part of what Matt had so badly sung, for he knew Chloe was really inside his head and under his skin. He wasn't sure on the part of knowing she was there to stay or not yet though, but like everything else that bit was going to become a lot clearer in time. Not too much time either.

Since Shannon was staying over at Jeff's anyway the invite was naturally open to Chloe too since she and Mike were currently at loggerheads, and after everyone had left they were finally free to be able to act how they wanted to around each other, and as Chloe washed glasses for Claire while she and Jeff cleared away the bulk of the mess in the lounge she felt two hands slide around her waist and a pair of lips kiss her neck.

'Hey sexy' she purred, turning and kissing his cheek whilst swilling suds from a newly washed glass.

'Hey baby' he said, returning a kiss to her cheek and feeling glad there was no one else left in the house they had to hide this from. Or so he thought.

'Jeff, I erm, I just saw something interesting in the kitchen' said Matt after he had resurfaced from the downstairs bathroom after ten minutes of throwing up. He knew he shouldn't have been tempted by the white rum Tina had brought with her, it always knocked his stomach for six.

'Oh yeah?' said Jeff, throwing empty cans into a black refuse sack Claire held open.

'Yeah, Shannon and Chloe wrapped around each other like a couple of snakes in heat' he said, waiting for his revelation to be met with shocked faces. He would have been waiting for a long time.

'Erm, we know Matt. For obvious reasons we thought you'd be pissed off about it so we kept it quiet, but they've been seeing each other for about three weeks now. She's not happy with Mike needless to say' said Claire gently, letting go of the sack and walking over to her brother in law.

'I don't want any part of this, and thanks for not telling me so far either because I really don't wanna fucking know, and wish I didn't. Maybe I could still look at Shannon in a certain light if I hadn't have seen what I just did, but for him to do that, after he saw the mess Amy left behind...................................................................I'm leaving' said Matt, more disappointedly than angrily, picking up his jacket off the back of the couch and heading for the door.

'Matt no, wait don't go' Claire began, moving to go after him but being stopped by Jeff gently grabbing the top of her arms.

'Leave him, he'll be okay. You know how close to home it is for him' he said, turning her around and kissing her forehead. 'And I know you just wanna make sure he's okay and be supportive, sweet little thing that you but just leave him to cool off' he added, smiling at her.

'Who was that at the front door?' asked Shannon as he and Chloe walked back in from the kitchen.

'Matt, and he knows. He saw you two in the kitchen' replied Jeff.

'I'll be back' he said, kissing Chloe's cheek and hightailing it out of the house before anyone could stop him.

'MATT! WAIT UP!' he shouted, watching his friend starting to disappear further into the night and running to catch up.

'Dude, do you have any idea what you're fucking doing?' he said, turning around just as his younger friend caught up. He didn't give him chance to answer, launching into a tirade Shannon expected would come.

'That's another man's WIFE in there you're messing with! Jesus fucking Christ Shannon didn't you stop to even think? No, you obviously didn't! Because if you had, or even had the slightest idea how it feels to have someone you love fuck someone else behind your back you wouldn't have done it! And I know you ain't a nasty guy, or stupid, so why the fuck do something that I can tell you right now is all gunna come crashing down around you both? Risking her marriage, your face when Mike finds out, and everything else there is just to fuck each other's brains out whenever you get a chance? Jesus if you wanna get laid that badly just go and find a Lauren replacement! Don't fool with another man's woman!' he ranted, raising his voice but not shouting.

'That's the thing though man, I have feelings for her. I'm not in love or anything, but there's something there. And as for Mike, even though he's a dickhead who speaks to her like she's nothing I do still feel bad. I know its wrong Matt, but I can't stop it. And I don't want to either, I know that's selfish but she's the woman I want, and she's with a total ass. They don't exactly have a happy marriage either, even if you take me out of the equation' Shannon replied, rubbing his chin. 'Just don't think the fact that she's married doesn't play on my mind every last second I'm ever with her, because it does. Like I say, I do know I'm wrong' he added, watching Matt look down on him with his arms folded and a slight crease in his brow.

'Then why do it? Why lower your own standards?' he replied, unfolding his arms.

'Like I said, I just can't help myself. She makes me happy. If even I can say that about her after only knowing her nine weeks it makes her a hell of a person. You know how reserved I am around new people' he said with a small shrug.

'Shan, I hear what you're saying, but I can't condone it. I won't say shit to anyone because you're my boy, but you have to understand I don't agree with it at all' said Matt.

'I never expected you to, and it's one of the reasons I didn't tell you either. Thanks for hearing me out when you had every right just to keep on walking dude. Are you gunna come back in or head off then?' he then asked.

'Head off I think. Look, I'm not happy with you but I'm not going to make a big thing of it, just don't mention what you and Chloe are doing, or put it in front of me either because I just don't wanna know, okay?' he said. Shannon just nodded and reached out to pat his shoulder before saying goodnight and turning back to the house to see Chloe waiting for him on the doorstep.

'Get back in gorgeous, it's cold out here' said Shannon, watching her sitting on the step smoking a cigarette.

'Just waiting for you is all. Jeff and Claire headed up to bed already so I said I'd lock up' she replied, getting up and re entering the house with him. She found an ashtray to put her cigarette out in and then went and locked the front door before going back into the lounge.

'So how did it go? Is he mad?' she asked, sitting down next to him and hugging his huge arm.

'I think it's a case of he's not pissed, but not happy either. He thinks I'm letting myself down, and because of all the shit that happened with his ex he's just extra sensitive to it. He said he wouldn't tell anyone, and I assume by anyone he means Mike' he replied, pulling her down onto his lap and stroking her hair, reaching to kiss her cheek.

'So what happens now then?' she asked, turning onto her back and stroking his chest through the black Affliction t shirt he was wearing, the one she loved seeing him in most.

'Bedtime I think' he said, lifting her into his arms as he got up off the couch and walking to turn the lamp in the corner off before heading up the stairs to one of the three guest bedrooms.

'KEEP IT DOWN YOU CRAZY KIDS!' He yelled jokingly at the sex noises he could hear, thumping Jeff's bedroom door with his elbow.

'LIKE YOU WON'T BE MAKING THE SAME SOUNDS IN TEN MINUTES! NOW FUCK OFF!' Came Jeff's muffled shout as well as the sound of Claire's raucous laugh. He and Chloe laughed and he carried her on to the room at the end of the hallway next to the bathroom, kicking the door shut with his foot and throwing her unceremoniously down onto the bed.

'Ready for some fucking then you sexy, sexy, sexy lady?' he said, kneeling over her and removing his t shirt.

'Just you try and stop me' she replied, sliding her hands down his arms and kissing him deeply.


	15. Chapter 15 Perfect sex

She could feel her body react already just to the feel of his weight on top of her, every cell within her starting to awaken with arousal to the feel of him so close against her, his hands travelling down her bare arms and linking his fingers through hers as they kissed, his breath coming out in hot bursts through his nose and a small groan bubbling up in his throat as her hands reached down to undo his belt.

'Ahhh, this time he doesn't try and stop me' she observed, slipping her hand in and squeezing his rapidly hardening dick through the white boxers he wore, making it suddenly stand more rigidly to attention at her touch while it's owner moved his mouth to her throat.

'I'm too horny to play games' he grumbled as he undid the piece of fabric tying up her grey wrap around top and opened it up to stare down at her for a few seconds while she sat up slightly so he could push the garment from her shoulders, his mouth kissing her mid chest to collarbone while his fingers flicked the clip fastening on her bra. Pulling it from her body he lay over her again and moved his mouth agonisingly slowly from her neck down to her bare breasts, while her hands pushed his jeans down. He pulled away from her for a second to kick off his clothes and also pull her out of the tight black pinstripe pants she wore before returning to her and continuing to give her beautiful body his undivided attention.

What she got from this man was unlike anything she had experienced in a long time. She'd had great lovers like him in the past, but had failed to secure herself one under the veil of marriage as it literally were, for Mike just didn't even compare to Shannon; it was unfair to compare a man so skilled and attentive to one who had turned into quite possibly the laziest lover she'd had to endure.  
Mike's idea of sex was about five minutes of fumbled foreplay before thrusting into her dry, with Shannon he got her so wet he was surprised she 'didn't stick to the bed' as he so comically put it. Just like he was doing right then, with two fingers working over her clit until it was hard as a marble and covered in her juices, so slippery and wet he couldn't wait to get his lips around it, so slid from her grasp and did just that. He started by covering as much of her as he could with his tongue, laying it flat against her wet crevices and licking her over and over before localising the stimulation to her clit, where he knew she needed it most.

Chloe let her head fall back into the stack of pillows with a raspy moan, thinking to herself how miraculous it was that something so small could transmit such a fierce current of pleasure when it was touched, her clit swelling more to the touch of his tongue which varied in its ministrations as he watched the way her body reacted to each of them, building her up until she was clinging to his shoulders and panting through gritted teeth, and bringing her back down again with softer touches to make her moan so softly it almost sounded helpless.

'Mmmmmmmm I can't get enough of how fucking good that feels, mmmmm yeah just like that, oooooooooooh' she purred, running her fingers through his hair, a touch that made him even more aroused than he previously felt.

'You are my favourite thing to have in my mouth, well your clit is at least' he said in way of offering reason before sucking on it, the pressure making more pleasure burst forth from the tiny hard nub as she felt his tongue rolling against it, and then felt it sucked again much, much harder, causing her body to almost convulse against him. Each time he felt her move or heard her moan it provided enough mental stimulation to make his arousal grow to a level that felt uncomfortable, the need for his own gratification causing him physical pain he was so turned on. So within seconds he had matched deed to thought and slid back up her body until he was inside her, the burning ache his erection caused him encased in what felt like liquid velvet.

'Daaaaaamn that's better!' he exclaimed as she giggled a little at him.

'I wasn't aware you got so excited going down' she replied, hooking her arms around his neck and pulling him into a kiss.

'I don't usually! It's just you, I told you before you do indescribable things to me' he said, before re entering the kiss she had claimed from him and thrusting hard and deep enough into her for her to once again break free from his lips and cry out at the sensations he inflicted on her body, his pace not changing at all from the frantic and furious rate he moved against her at, mouth caressing her neck as his arms slid down hers and then up her sides, moving to her chest to grasp her breasts and bring his mouth to each in turn while his dick battered into her at a senselessly fast pace. Each frenzied thrust brought with it a wave of tingles more intense than the last deep within her pussy, which clenched around him furiously as Chloe let out a long succession of high pitched 'Ahhh's'................................

'Okay so either I need earplugs or we need to start again and drown them out!' said Claire as she lay back against Jeff's chest trying not to listen to the sound of Chloe screaming two rooms down.

'Yeah, I could make you scream louder than that' he replied, a huge grin spreading across his handsome face.

'Well? I'm waiting!' She said, laughing softly.

'Get down there and blow it back up and I will' he said, looking down at his dick and then back at her, grin still fixed firmly to his face.

'Your wish is my command' she said, turning onto her front and sitting astride him, kissing him from his chest all the way down to his stomach slowly until the anticipation killed him, gratified greatly when her mouth seemed to almost swallow his dick whole......................................................

'Okay where you pushing me to then lady Chloe?' Shannon asked, sitting up on his knees.

'Right there'll do me just fine, Mmmmmmmmmmmm' she purred, sitting astride him and sinking back down onto his hardness until every last inch was buried deep inside her slick tightness, using her knees to begin to slide up and down on him in little bounces, chest pressed close to his as she kissed him and stroked his face. He managed to move himself so he was sat crossed legged under her, Chloe crossing her legs behind his back and sinking down onto his cock while his hands ran up her spine and around to grasp at her breasts as she rocked against him, feeling every single last inch of him tingle and stretch out her insides. Feeling his hands roam freely all over her flesh, the coldness of the heavy silver skull ring he wore on middle feeling icy across her hot skin she closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around him tighter, resting her chin on top of his head as his lips kissed her throat. She never thought sex this perfect could exist.

'Mmmmmm you're so damn hot' she purred, running her forefinger nail down his cheek and watching him turn his head to bite it then suck it into his mouth. He let it go and claimed her lip again, gently biting her cupids bow before he felt himself being pushed away,  
Chloe unhooking her legs from behind him and pressing him back down to the bed, only to be flipped over onto her back and re entered hard as his hands pressed her hips down into the mattress and his lips sucked her tongue, both panting and moaning loudly.

It didn't take long for them to work up to a level of erotic heat so strong it threatened to set the bed on fire, Shannon grinding down into her hard as once again she wrapped her legs around him with a tight grip, making him push harder against her and causing his head to bump against her g spot as it slid past.

'Fuck that feels incredible' panted Chloe, catching his lips in a kiss as her nails trailed the length of his spine and through his ponytail which was a little damp with the sweat beginning to pour off his back. She felt his hand reach up and stroke her face as his lips kissed her neck, his soft moans becoming deeper by the second as he thrust into her faster, his other hand stroking her thigh as she gasped audibly with every breath she took, feeling a beautiful current of white hot heat explode from her g spot. Her hips bucked up off the bed as her whole body pumped against his in a huge spasm, making him fuck her hard and fast before he groaned and filled her with cum.

'FUCK, ARRRRGH FUCK' he roared as his dick shot jet after jet inside her still quivering chamber, feeling her nails cling on deep onto his shoulders as she shook beneath him, her body still craving more. She knew all he'd need was about ten minutes until he was good to go again, so sat astride him and licked his chest as it rose and fell quickly at first, then slowly as he caught his breath, and then back to rapid as her tongue worked over all the grooves of the defined muscles.

'I hope you weren't planning on going to sleep, because you aren't gonna get chance for a few hours yet if I get my way' she said, before circling his navel wither tongue.

'Okay, I suppose I better just give in now then' he sighed, pretending to sound put out. She looked up at him and laughed at the grin he was flashing her, and then slid back up his sweaty body and kissed him, feeling her nipples pinched hard as she did. And a few hours later as 4am wound around they were still going strong, Shannon leaning back against the bedroom wall with Chloe crouched at his feet. Neither quite knew how they'd got there, but they had managed to have sex quite literally all around the bedroom in those early hours.

He lent back against the wall as her hands stroked his chest and tongue began to beat back and forth over the tip of his dick, closing his eyes and smiling at the feeling of her mouth making him hard, and her fingernails running right down his body and gently grazing over his balls as she hooked her other hand around his thigh to balance herself. She ran her mouth up and down all over his thick shaft, feeling the veins stand out as they filled with the blood that made him hard she moaned around his dick, sending delicious vibrations out as she did, making his hands tangle in her hair and a long low moan escape his lips as the pleasure that her lips brought as they encased his dick in their soft warmth made his whole body tingle.

She then used her tongue to trace tiny circles all the way up and down the underside of his length while her thumb rubbed back and forth over the head, seeping a generous amount of precum and hearing his breathing sound more deep and raspy by the second, knowing he was getting close..

'Just a warning baby but I think I'm about to……………………………… Ahhhhhh, cum' said Shannon as his dick burst a load of hot semen into her mouth. She just looked up at him and laughed, at least he had tried to warn her of his pending orgasm. She swallowed and moved her tongue to his balls, licking each of them in turn and then sucking them gently while her hand pumped his sensitive cock, wanting him hard again.

'Stop that or ill be no use to you at all if you get me over excited' he said, pulling her up and kissing her before moving from against the wall and pushing her there instead.

'Now, be a good girl and bend over for me, with your hands against the wall' he said.

'Specific aren't we?' said Chloe, turning to give him a curious look as she did as she was asked.

'Yeah, and I like the view from this angle, you got a damn fine ass' he said, slapping it and hearing the echo of his hand meeting her skin throughout the bedroom. He started by leaning over and kissing her from her neck all the way down to her ass, sparing no inch of flesh in between as he used his hands to part her legs a little further, then plunge his tongue inside of her, circling her opening as she cried out at the amazing sensation of it. He then used his hands to spread her ass cheeks further apart as his tongue continued to explore her intimately, reaching forward to taste her clit and then lick her back and forth as she became wetter, her breathing laboured as she felt more and more turned on.

She then felt him move from behind her as he stood, and momentarily cursed that his tongue was no longer where she wished it to be until she felt his fingers slide inside her, delivering a warm rush of gratification as they pressed into her slick walls and stimulated her until she was so close to cuming he could have pushed her over the edge with just one more nudge but pulled them away, not wanting to let her get there yet. He used his thumb to stimulate her clit as she moaned and moaned, finally groaning out loudly when his fingers slid back in.

'You're such an evil tease!' she cried as he barely moved his fingers, then started to fuck her with them fast, his hand slapping against her ass as she cried out over and over, then she felt his dick push inside her and start to slide in and out just as speedily as his fingers. She pressed her hands against the blue painted wall and opened herself up to him more, wanting to take every last inch of his dick inside her, needing to feel him fill her completely.

'You can't get enough of this can you? Dirty girl' he said, leaning forward and pulling her head to the side by her hair to kiss her, his other hand rested on her ass until he withdrew his cock again, gave it a few strokes against her clit and re entered her with his fingers, teasing her beyond belief. He stimulated her with his fingers deeply, and then thrust his dick in shallowly, alternating between the two until she was crying out uncontrollably, dying to feel a release he just wouldn't let her have.

'Please Shannon, please just let me fucking cum!' she pleaded as once again he pushed his hardness back into her, feeling her muscles lock tightly around him, wanting him to stay exactly where he was.

'Nope' he replied simply with a laugh, continuing to build her to boiling point only to pull away again. He ran his hands up and down her back as the water pulsed down onto their bodies and then slid them around to pinch at her nipples as he pounded away inside her. She was praying that when she once again felt the tingles of orgasm starting to work up through her groin that he would let her cum but once again she felt his dick slip out of her just at the crucial moment.

'Right, I'm not standing for any more of this' said Chloe, standing up to full height again and pushing him back until he was sat down on a chair just by the side of the bed, sliding back down onto his dick as she straddled him. She ground down on him hard and fast, feeling him stretch her to the very limit as his hands pulled her hips closer to him, his tongue circling hers as they kissed and groaned in sheer erotic bliss.

She knew he was close as his breaths became ragged and gaspy, their sweaty bodies sliding against each other deliciously as she felt his teeth at her neck, not caring that he was biting her hard enough to leave bruises. But just like he had done to her she didn't let him cum and when she felt he was reaching the point of no return Chloe stood up off him and smiled wickedly.

'Two can play your game, but I'm so horny ill only do it once' she panted before slamming herself down onto him again and rocking her hips into his body so hard and fast they both came within moments, her nails scraping a layer of skin off his chest as he clung to her shoulders and sighed with relief as her body shook against his.

'You're not falling asleep on me already are you?' Shannon laughed some time after when they were both lying in the bed again.

'Ha fucking ha' she said. They had been having sex for the last three hours after all.

'See, I make you cum lots and I make you laugh. I'm practically perfect' he said, giving her a smug smile. She slapped his chest and giggled, but inside thought she really couldn't agree more. He really was perfect; for her at least.


	16. Chapter 16 No stopping it

'Don't! SHANNON! You can't look my bodyguards back!' shouted Chloe as her boss stalked her with a fire extinguisher, pulling Kerry in front of her. He'd been away from work for the last three weeks with a chronic chest infection, but was now back and ready to put ink to skin; and be a human shield as it would seem right then.

Chloe had thought it fun to discreetly unhook his wallet chain and wrap it around the frame of the chair Shannon was sitting in, clipping it back on again as she leant over his shoulder and read a feature in a tattoo magazine about the shop he had shown her. She, Chad and Kerry all nearly died laughing when he stood up and took the seat with him. And now he was exacting revenge.

'Come on big fella outta the way, this is between me and her' said Shannon, trying to get around Kerry.

'Think about the unprofessional tone lowering you'll be doing by blasting her in foam' he replied, feeling Chloe grabbing onto his belt.

'There's no one in the shop, which means her ass is mine' he said, moving closer.

'That wouldn't be the first time this week' muttered Chloe through a little giggle.

'WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY BACK THERE?' shouted Kerry, whirling around to look at her just as Chad shouted 'CUSTOMER!'

'Oh yeah he don't fucking know! Whatever she tells you, keep it under that hat of yours' said Shannon, turning and putting down the fire extinguisher on his way back to the front of the shop.

'Okay cigarette break time' said Kerry, pulling Chloe along to the rear of the shop by the wrist. She took out her cigarettes and lit one, then as she went to pass it to him burst out laughing at the curious face he was pulling. She'd never seen an eyebrow rise that high in her life.

'STOP!' she giggled, tapping his shoulder with the back of her hand. Still the face stayed on. She just stood and eyeballed him for a few moments while she lit a smoke of her own, and then rolled her eyes and huffed.

'Okay I'm having sex with him! Don't tell anyone!' she said quietly, shrugging and dropping her shoulders. In the time it took her to have another drag of her cigarette and toss her long ponytail over her shoulder (Claire's friend Tina had skilfully created a clip on ponytail dyed to match her own multi toned hair that gave the impression of waist length hair) Kerry's face finally changed and he smiled. And then began to laugh, slowly and quietly at first before the volume increased to a much louder level.

'I knew it' he said simply, still laughing.

'Why is it so funny?' she asked, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

'Because it was only ever a matter of time, and of course I ain't gunna tell anyone kid. Although you know it'd give me the greatest satisfaction to tell Mike that Shannon's doing his job now. Oh man I'd love to see his face!' he said, completely guffawing as Chloe slapped his bare arm over and over.

'I can't believe you! You're the only person who's reacted this way! Even Ben and Alice had the good grace to look a little shocked and appalled!' she said, finishing her assault on his arms.

'That's because I'm happy about it. I haven't seen look this cheerful since before you married Mike' he replied. It was something that hit her fast, a cold hard truth if you will. Just a few days shy of a month into an affair with her boss Chloe was feeling happier than she ever had, and obviously it showed.

'You gotta point there' she said, shrugging lightly.

'The only thing I'm gonna say on it is be careful' he then said, giving her shoulder a squeeze.

'I will, don't worry. I torture myself enough about it without making it risky too. Getting caught is something that doesn't appeal to me' she said vehemently. Four days later however she would find herself singing a very different tune. She hadn't managed to get any time with Shannon for a week by then, because of work, Mike, him doing his usual input on 'The Hardy Show', Mike, Mike and Mike again. When they weren't arguing they weren't talking at all, and then came the long nights when he would sit down and pick her apart completely. She needed the relief she was feeling at being pinned to the bathroom wall with Shannon's hands all over her, mouth buried against her neck.

It was a Friday night and Mike would be picking her up in less than ten minutes, which despite what she had originally said to Kerry made it even more hot; the fact she knew at that very moment as she was reunited with her lover once more, her husband was driving down to collect her.

'You better fuck me hard, and you better fuck me fast' she panted, feeling the tip of his cock push against her opening before sliding fully in.

'Wouldn't want it any other way' he said, looking at her intently before kissing her again and fucking her so hard she felt like she was going to be driven through the wall. It was hot, forbidden, illicit, hammer and tongs sex; all she'd needed and craved for the last seven days coming at her so fiercely she didn't want it to end. She wanted to be going home with him to do it all the more, not Mike to sit and no doubt face another character assassination session.

'How much did you miss me then?' he panted, cock sliding effortlessly into the milky wetness lubricating him thoroughly.

'This much' she said, hand sliding down between their bodies to rub her fingers either side of his wet cock and then slip them into his mouth. It was the kind of action he had only one reaction for; sliding his hands around her thighs and holding her fast as he plunged into her with such force she screamed, pussy locking around him tightly, arms wrapped around his back, the smallest amount of bare torso flesh rubbing against his as the tops they wore rode up.

'Fuck you're getting so wet' he panted, feeling himself glazed more with each thrust into her, glossy heat encasing him and pulling him headlong into an orgasm as he drove into her faster and faster, hearing her little whimpers of pleasure loudening into full on screams, and a blast of music come from the front of the shop. Thank god for people like Kerry to provide sufficient din to drown out the noise of them coming together.

'FUCK, FUCK , FUCK AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH SHIT YES!' Chloe screamed as Shannon pounded out the last waves of his orgasm into her body relentlessly, causing her head to bang off the wall repeatedly as she was lost in a sea of pleasure rushing through her body.

'Mike, Mike, MIKE GETTING OUT OF CAR, Mike, Mike!' they suddenly heard Kerry say outside the bathroom like an alarm. They managed to get rearranged at lightning speed before running out the back of the shop and standing apart, Chloe throwing him a cigarette and sitting atop one of the metal trash cans, wincing slightly. Shannon couldn't help but snort with laughter, and then bit his cheek to prevent any more noise as they were joined by Mike, Kerry behind him looking highly amused.

'Shannon Moore – 1, Mike Daniels – 0' he whispered into his ear as he stepped out of the shop and watched Mike hug his wife.

'Shannon Moore about fifty fucking seven' he whispered back as Kerry pinched his nose and tried not to laugh. 'You're fucking loving this aren't you?' he then added.

'All I gotta do is jack off and I'll be enjoying myself as much as you two are' he replied, this time making Shannon completely fall apart laughing, unable to hold it in or try and hide it.

'What are you two fuckers dying about over here?' asked Chloe, walking over to them hand in hand with Mike, who looked his usual aloof self.

'Kerry being vulgar about a customer, I can't even repeat what he said' said Shannon, face scrunched up as he laughed with his head thrown back. He knew it was bad, he really did. But he just couldn't help it. Mike was too much of an asshole to have mercy on, and that was the only thing he could think of to justify screwing his wife. Apart from the fact of course that he liked it, and wasn't about to stop wanting her either.

'If I ever find out your wife's the first to know' she teased, letting go of Mike's hand and giving each of them a little hug.

'See ya tomorrow then bitches' she then said, taking Mike's hand again and noticing him at least wave and say 'bye guys' as he followed her in. But out in the car, the tirade began.

'Why did you have to hug Kerry in front of me?' he asked, switching the blinker to right and pulling out onto the road.

'Because he's my friend and you need to get over it' she replied, hearing her cell tinkle in her bag indicating she had a new text.

'I know he's your friend, I just don't need to see you hugging him that's all. You know I don't like it, have some respect for me' he said as she searched her bag for her phone.

'Why should I? You have little to no respect for me Mike! Ever!' she said strongly, locating her phone and sliding it up to see a message from Shannon.

'Try and get away tonight. I'm nowhere near done with you yet x' was what it read. She was vaguely aware of her husband retaliating, but just reading that message spun an erotic show reel of her and him together, bodies entwined and fused at the mouth and groin.

'Are you even listening to me? He shouted, slapping his hand off the steering wheel which made her jump out of her skin.

'You know something Mike? I think after this week I'm tired of listening to you, all you've done is go on and on and on at me and I'm really fucking fed up of it. Pull over' she said, glaring at him.

'I SAID PULL OVER!' she roared, then hung on to the bar by the window as he swerved over and half up onto the sidewalk, slamming his foot on the breaks.

'Surprise surprise, off to bitch about me to Alice huh? Give the old croan my regards' he spat, earning his door to be slammed so hard the window shook. Thank god they had been passing a route down to what she referred to as a 'safe house'. Because hers at that moment was like a warzone, one which showed no signs of cease fire. She knew it was the beginning of the end.

Walking down the alleyway that backed onto a row of old houses Chloe lit a cigarette and steeled herself not to cry. Her marriage wasn't worth tears over, this she knew. Mike had just turned so cold towards her it made her resent him to an extent where she'd do anything not to be around him 80% of the time, and was glad of the fact she worked from 12am-10pm four or five days a week. It meant she was away from him, away from his rude remarks, constant put downs and still not interest in a sex life. Regardless of what was going on with Shannon she knew since she'd started work at the Gas Chamber four months ago things had gone from bad to worse.

Stepping out of the alley and into the park she stopped for a moment and took a deep breath of the crisp May air and felt the drizzle of pending rain lightly fleck her face. She let the breath out and carried on walking until she got to another little alley over to the side of the park with two houses flanking it. Opening the rear gate of the property on the left she heard Max barking and saw Alice pop into sight through the big kitchen window.

'Hey sugarplum, you're the last person I expected to see through my window at 10.15 on a Friday night' she said, opening the door and holding Max back by his red collar.

'I hope I'm not interrupting your evening, but things are bad again' said Chloe, stepping into the house and hugging Alice once she'd locked the door and let go of Max.

'You're only interrupting me watching some rubbish with Ben Affleck in it being as wooden as a chair, I'm glad of the company' she said, picking up another glass off the draining board and pouring a large measure of red wine into it once they got to the lounge. Chloe thudded down on the couch and wrapped herself in one of the deep blue velvet throws hanging off the back of the it, accentuating the blue, turquoise and black theme of the room like the other throws and beaded scarves thrown around here and there. It had always reminded her of the tastes of a 17th century Parisian artist crossed with a hippy; it was cosy cool and decadent all at the same time.

'Chloe, you look so unhappy it makes me actually feel like crying half the time. Is there anything at all I can do to change that? Because the last time I saw you eight days ago you looked like this too and it's worrying me' said Alice, sitting next to her and offering a cigarette. She reached out through the incense smoke drifting between one and took it, mouthing 'cheers' before replying.

'If you could deliver me a Shannon right here' she said, gesturing to her side.

'You can do that yourself, call him up and ask him if he wants to visit' said Alice, sipping her wine as she passed Chloe her gold lighter.

'I know it isn't right, but what I have with him just looks so much better than Mike every fucking day' she said, handing Alice the lighter and pulling her cell from her bag.

'How could it not? I mean from what you tell me this is the kind of guy you'd be dating if you were single. I guess I'll have to judge the rest when I see you two together' she said, tapping her finger atop her friend's phone. She flipped it open and scrolled through for Shannon's number; pressing the call button and listening to it ring out.

'Hey sexy legs' he answered on the ninth ring.

'Hey dude, how you doing?' she said slightly weakly.

'I'm okay, but you sound like you could be happier' he said, picking up on the deflated tone in her voice.

'I'm at Alice's. Volcano Michael decided to erupt in the car so I sought refuge. And refuge would like to know if you wanna pay us a visit. And I do too' she said. Alice couldn't help but notice the way she looked brighter just for hearing his voice.

'Text me her address and I'll be there as soon as' he said, grabbing a clean t shirt from the closet and pulling it over his head, having trouble tugging it down his back since he was still slightly damp from the shower he'd just got out of.

'Okay, see ya soon' she said, hanging up and smiling.

'That's better already' said Alice, making her smile wider and then laugh shyly into her hand. It was then she had a thought, something that had flashed through her friends mind on a couple of occasions too.

'Hon, I have to ask. Could this thing you have with Shannon ever be worth leaving Mike for?' asked Alice.

'That's something I'm starting to think on more and more every day. I don't know what he would think about it though; I mean he says if I was single he'd be dating me right now, but I just don't know. I do really like him though, I have feelings for him that extend beyond the fact he's an amazing lover' Chloe confessed. Alice sat and nodded as she sipped her wine, wanting to witness how they acted around each other before she added anything more.


	17. Chapter 17 The one for you

Alice couldn't help but chuckle when she saw the speed Chloe raced out of the lounge at when she heard the front doorbell ring. It was like what she had witnessed with her daughter Jenny when she was dating in her teen years, the excitement of being reunited with the one who had captured her interest.

'Hey sexy boy' she said as soon as she opened the door, her heart doing the usual somersault in her chest.

'Come here' he said, pulling her into a hug. 'The more that rat faced fuck you're married to puts you down the more I wanna go and kick his fucking teeth out. What did he say to you this time?' he added, feeling a long sigh through her nose flutter across his neck as she pressed herself to him close.

'Complained at me for hugging Kerry in front of him, and then turned it into a huge row' she said, feeling his thumb stroking her inner elbow.

'It's me he has to worry about you hugging' he said with a small laugh which she returned too as she looked up at him.

'I know' she said, pressing her nose against his and softly rubbing it in an Eskimo kiss before giving him a real one.

'Because one day, I'll hug you so tight I won't let go' he said as soon as their kiss had broke, meaning every word. He hated the fact he had to share her with someone who didn't deserve her, even though she was Mike's to begin with. She smiled and took his hand, leading him through to the lounge were he went and gave Alice a hug in the armchair she'd moved to.

'It'll be nice to actually get to know the man who has lead my best friend so willingly into adultery, thanks for coming' she said. 'Would you like a drink? Chloe and I are on the French stuff if you wanna glass? If not I have about a ton of beer in the fridge that Ben left here' she said. Shannon laughed about the adultery comment as he sat down and draped an arm around Chloe before answering.

'A beer will be just fine, I don't do wine. Makes me ill' he confessed. Alice nodded and smiled before getting up to fetch his drink, Max on her heels thinking something along the lines of 'if mommy's going to the kitchen this must mean food!' as usual, being gratified when she took a small chunk of cheese from the container in the fridge and held it out for him to scoff while she fetched the beer and returned to her comfy seat in the lounge.

And for most of the night she just sat and observed the way they behaved around each other, and noticed just how strong the connection between them was. There was no way in hell you couldn't notice it, the way they seemed to blend into one another, finish each other's sentences and the like, the way they just seemed to fit effortlessly. She also couldn't help but notice the kind of attention Shannon gave her friend. He looked right at her whenever she spoke, his concentration on her words never waning as he took it all in, the way he was always touching or stroking her without it being OTT on the affection and most of all just how happy he looked sat there next to her.

She'd only met him a handful of times, either then popping into the bar on a break or her visiting the shop, but she could read people very well and from what she read off of Shannon said loud and clear how much he was into Chloe. Completely infatuated would be somewhere close if she was to describe what she saw; the chemistry they shared. And in turn she just couldn't remember a time in the many years she had known Chloe when she had looked happier. She smile she wore on her face as Shannon began to tell her of an amusing event down at the shop a few days ago was even brighter than the smile she remembered on her wedding day to Mike.

'Anyway, Chad was out so Chloe agreed she'd do the piercing for this guy, and if you don't stop laughing I'm not even gunna be able to say the rest! Shut up!' he began, covering Chloe's giggling mouth with his hand. Alice nodded and urged him to continue.

'So she gets in there and warns him of all the usuals, how much having a needle rammed through the end of his dick is going to hurt etc, etc....'

'I worded it a bit better than that' she interjected, once again getting a hand across her mouth.

'And what was that part about SHUT UP you didn't understand? So anyway, she warns him about everything and he's fine with it. Then about five minutes later she comes back around from the other side of the curtain pulling her gloves off and trying like fuck not to laugh, she's there pinching her nose and biting her lip as she comes flying across the shop to where I'm sat with Kerry and says 'Dude you gotta do the piercing' to Kerry, and when he asks why she can't she tells us the guy is sat in there with a boner the size of the Washington Monument! I had to run out of the shop to die laughing so fast I fell over twice!' Said Shannon as Alice threw her head back and laughed.

'I bet it went down pretty quick when Kerry walked in huh?' she said at last when she was able to talk.

'Apparently so' laughed Chloe, resting her head on Shannon's shoulder as he hugged her to his side. The level of affection they shared with each other was like watching how a real couple behaved around each other, and now she had him in her life Alice was left wondering if it really could be the development Chloe needed to kick Mike to the curb; where he belonged in her opinion.  
And when Shannon kindly offered to take Max for a walk around the block sometime later to cease his incessant whinging at the front door to go out again she was quick to point out all she had noticed in the two hours he had been there for.

'I swear to Christ Clo, you're a perfect match! He's the kind of guy you should be with; the one for you if you like. The way that man behaves around you spells out only one thing to me; he wants you all to himself, he absolutely adores you from what I can see, and you know how good I am at reading people. And I'll tell you this much for one thing; I've never seen you happier than you are when you're with him' she said strongly literally as soon as the front door had shut, taking Max and Shannon out into the night.

'He makes me really happy you're right. But I just don't know hun, leaving Mike for someone I've only been involved with for a month? Isn't that a bit crazy? I mean what if it fucks up and I'm left with nothing at the end of it?' she asked, a fear Alice was quick to reassure.

'Number one – Shannon or no Shannon you can't possibly tell me your marriage is a strong one can you? He's just made you realize that there are other options out there, and yes if you left Mike and started seeing Shannon properly you'd effectively be leaving him for someone else this much is true. But don't let that be your reason to leave, let your reason to leave be the fact you're not happy with your husband because you're clearly not. The fact you have two open arms to walk right into is neither here nor there at the end of the day is it? And as for having nothing, don't talk such crap! As soon as you say the word Ben and I are hotfooting it over to your place to move you and your stuff outta there, and then argue about whose house you'll stay at on the drive home!' she said, making Chloe laugh a little but still look very nervous.

'So that's what you two are expecting then? For me to leave Mike?' she asked softly. Alice nodded slowly and seriously before adding words.

'I've been waiting for it for years'

'And for the first time in years, I'm seriously considering it. But then I get held back by all these thoughts' she then confessed, having her words and thoughts once again so wonderfully reassured by her wise friend.

'Guilt being one. But you gotta remember, what you are doing to him is only what he deserves. How the hell can he expect you to have a solid marriage if he puts in no effort? He's driven you to look elsewhere for happiness, happiness you've found with your blonde haired blue eyed boy! Now, we're going to partake in a little exercise right now, I'm going to shout out all the fundamentals of a successful relationship and you are going to answer me honestly on each of them. Let's start. Love' said Alice, refilling their drinks.

'I can't say what I feel for him at the moment has a lot to do with love' she replied, thanking her for the wine top up and taking a careful sip of the 'Alice measure'. She always filled a wine glass to the top.

'Okay, respect' she then said.

'He has none for me, which makes it increasingly difficult to have any for him' she replied. And so it went on.

'The fear of losing each other'

'Not for me, fuck knows how he'd feel about that though'

'Passion'

'Zilch'

'Trust'

'I suppose. I'm the untrustworthy one'

'Honesty and understanding'

'Nada'

'Find a damn good divorce lawyer. Because really sweetie, what are you holding onto it for? Holding onto him for? He treats you like shit, wants you to change and has no respect for you. And he's jealous as hell over your success, hates the fact people know the name Chloe Daniels, that in the tattoo world you're a big name whose work is revered! If he was any kind of a husband he'd be prouder than hell over your achievements, and all he can do is pour scorn on them because he's bitter. Can you tell I think it's time you moved on yet or do you want me to continue?' she said, taking a big breath at the end of her verbal marathon.

'I hear what you're saying, I really do. And in reply to it I agree with everything you've said, but I need some thinking time. I really do. Damn I could sure use a holiday right about now!' she exclaimed, taking another gulp of her Merlot.

'I can understand that. It isn't something you should take lightly by any means but at the same time it's becoming very clear that there's nothing left to save with you and Mike' replied Alice, hearing the sound of Shannon and Max re entering the house.

'DEMON DOG! I swear I never thought I'd meet another canine as bad as Oz is on a leash! All of the time he's like 'what's this smell? What's over here? Now I wanna go this way, no hold on I wanna go backwards! Oh look there's my shadow let's bark at it! Who's that person over the other side of the park! Let's try and drag Shannon over to go see!' CRAZY FUCKING ANIMAL!' He shouted at a hundred miles an hour, the girls falling into hysterics and Max jumping up to cover his disgruntled but amused new friend in kisses.

'He's a typical Red Setter, mad as a box of frogs' said Alice, calling Max over and giving him a scratch behind the ears as he panted and looked as hyper as ever.

'It's like trying to take an epileptic for a walk in the middle of a fit! That dog breaks into a seizure as soon as he steps onto the sidewalk!' he continued, unzipping his hoodie and throwing it over the back of the couch before sitting down and burying his head in Chloe's lap with his feet curled up.

'Quite comfortable now are we?' she asked, a current of laughter rippling her voice.

'Yes' he answered simply, resurfacing and turning over so he was lying on his back with his head against the arm. Immediately she moved her hand to the back of his neck and ran her fingers up and down, into his hair and across the short stubble underneath. He closed his black lined eyes for a few moments and then stared back up at her intensely, with a smile she'd never seen before. She couldn't put her finger on how or why it was different to all the other times, but it was enough to make her want to lean down and kiss him softly.

Alice felt her heart thud a little faster in her chest as she watched them seemingly get lost in one another, bodies entwining perfectly together. Not even the four years she'd had with Mike made her as happy as she looked lying there with Shannon, just thirteen and a half weeks after meeting him. She was glad the Chloe she witnessed right then looked a lot happier than the one she'd seen a few hours ago through her kitchen window.

'Bye bye Mike' she thought, watching Shannon stroke her cheek and smile at her, her friend beaming down at him like he was her whole world and more.

'Anyway kids, I'm taking my tired old ass off to bed. Shannon if you wanna stay over with madam here that's fine, just keep the noise down' said Alice, getting up and walking past where they were lay, patting each on the shoulder as she went with Max following her. His bed was against the chimney breast in her bedroom, the cosiest place in the house if you asked him.

'Not going home then?' he asked, reaching out and stroking the inside of her wrist where her hand rested across his stomach.

'I can't think of anywhere I'd wanna be less right now' she replied honestly.

'That bad huh?' he asked.

'Yeah, probably worse than I realize too. But anyway, I don't want to talk about him. I just wanna........................be' she said, moving him over to swing her legs up on the couch too and lie next to him wrapped in his huge arms.

'You got it sugar' he replied, kissing the top of her head and tracing the outline of the Rob Zombie cartoon illustrated demons on the top of her arm. It would turn out just an hour later he would become the topic of conversation, the last thing Chloe expected herself to be talking about as she lay in bed next to Shannon in Alice's spare room.


	18. Chapter 18 Eary hours

'So how long has it been like this for exactly? Surely it wasn't this bad when you married him. C'mon Clo I like to think I know you better than that, and to me you wouldn't have got married to the guy if he'd been a total ass head back then too' said Shannon, finger trailing over her stomach tattoo as she lay back and smoked a cigarette. He'd quit again.

'He wasn't. He was great. He's always been very sardonic but he was never cruel with it back then like he is now. He made me laugh, made me happy. Then after we got married and I threw myself into my career more as people began to recognise my name and my work he just started to change. And he'd say I was the one acting differently, just because I had hopes and ambitions he was too selfish to support. And then came the backlash against my friends. He hates anyone else getting close to me, he thinks as his wife I should be his and his alone, he can't stand the fact I have other people in my life I'm close to as well as him. He's a really jealous person, and I think he knows it too and it makes him lash out more.  
And I think the more he lets all that stuff get to him, the more he punishes me for it. I need time away from him, to sort my head out. Feel clear for longer than five damn minutes' she said, stubbing her cigarette out and putting the ashtray back on the nightstand.

'So are those the only problems between you? I understand if you don't wanna tell me but I kinda get the sense there's a lot more' he said, moving onto his back while she rested her chin on his chest.

'Yeah there is, you're very perceptive you know' she began, reaching up and stroking the side of his neck. He smiled back at her and rubbed the back of her hand as she continued.

'There are a lot of small things, like the way I dress for instance. He'll throw the nastiest remarks he can at me to try and make me think I look ridiculous, or like I'm 'asking for it' as he puts it.  
'Dressing like a 19 year old tramp' is another he favours. And then he'll sit and give me digs about my makeup and my hair, or the music I listen to. And then there's the other big problem; the fact he's suddenly decided he doesn't want children. I don't ever mention it to him anymore because I just can't, it's too upsetting.

He knows how much I wanna become a mother one day, and I feel like he trapped me by saying 'yes I want kids for definite' and once we were married changing his tune in the drop of a hat. I'm 34 in nine days time, and I know that's still young but this is the time I should be thinking seriously about children. But he just won't change his mind, I mean for fuck sake he insists on using a condom even though I'm on the pill he's so fucking paranoid about it'. She was quiet for a few moments, looking like she was thinking over all she had just shared. She then sat up and curled her legs around in front of her, resting her elbows on them with her head in her hands.

'What the fuck did I ever do to him to deserve being hated so much? Because that's what I feel, like he hates me and everything to do with me! Everything that's dear or special to me he picks apart, why the hell did I marry him? Because he was the best thing on offer at the time and I was scared of ending up alone, that's why' she said, answering her own question and then starting to cry.

'I don't really know what to say here, so I'm just gunna do this until I think of something' said Shannon, reaching out and pulling her onto his lap, rearranging the duvet around them both and just holding her silently while she cried, tears slipping down her cheeks she dried with the hand not resting on his shoulder.

'You don't have to say a thing. I did kinda bombard you with  
everything all at once' she replied with a sad sigh.

'I asked, and that means I wanted to hear. Sure, I don't like hearing how the person I care about is being treated like she's nothing when she's one of the most incredible people I've ever met, but you didn't bombard me with anything. If you have shit on your mind I wanna listen, and for at least one of the things you mentioned I think I can help you with it' he said, hand stroking her thigh up and down under the duvet.

'How so?' she asked, wiping her eyes as the tears stopped falling from her eyes.

'You said you needed a break from everything, and that's something I can offer you. You've heard of the Ink and Iron expo up in California haven't you? Big bike and tattoo convention?' he began.

'Yeah I was there last year with Kat' she said.

'Well, I wasn't going to do it because it clashed with a match I was supposed to have, but since that one got put back three weeks I've been considering doing it. Okay so it's only two weeks away but I got an email from the event organisers two days ago telling me they still have spaces to fill. How about you and I roll on up there to represent the Gas Chamber? Gives you four days away since it's a two day exhibition and the rest of the time we need to get there and back. Wanna come with so I can show off the fact I employ one of the best artists in the industry?' he asked.

'It sounds like just the thing I need, yeah I'd love to. I would say let me ask Mike first but to be honest I really don't fucking care what he has to say about it. If he doesn't like it, bollocks as Claire would say' she laughed, looking forward to it already. Kat had already sent her several text messages along the lines of 'TATTOOING IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN WRESTLING! TELL HIM TO CANCEL! I MISS YOU!!!!!! Xxxx' so she was greatly looking forward to being able to see her far away friend again, and also being just that too; far away. Away from Mike and her wreck of her marriage most importantly.

'Okay, leave everything to me then and I'll get it all sorted. It'll be nice to have you all to myself for a few days too' he said, stroking her hair and kissing her head. Already she was starting to feel better.

'Thank you' she then said.

'For what? He asked.

'Just being you' she replied, moving herself so she was sat astride him but lying against his chest and kissing him. With every day that passed, and everything he said to her the more she thought that quite possibly the man she lay against could be the one her future lay with too, but for that moment she wanted to concentrate on the here and now of things, and reward him for A- being such a good listener and B- offering to take her away from it all for a few days to surround her with her passion; tattooing. And him of course.

'Can I just say, I have absolutely no problem with where this conversation has lead to' he said, throwing the duvet off them both as he watched her running her tongue down his sculpted body.

'I didn't think you would' she replied, her mouth moving back up to close around his nipple and suck it, gently nipping it with her teeth. She felt it harden immediately and gave it more attention in the form of alternating between blowing on it and licking it, and then doing the same to the other before moving her mouth to the centre of his body and licking the crease of his stomach muscles, feeling them jump around under the goose pimpled flesh that broke out and spread across his body from head to foot. She used her fingertips to slowly follow the trail her mouth had left, making him really shudder hard under her touch as the faintest of deep moans bubbled up from his throat, the anticipation of waiting for her mouth to reach its intended destination already killing him.

But Chloe intended on making him wait for a little while yet, and once she got to the black Calvin Klein boxers he was wearing she snapped the elastic waistband with her teeth and kissed all along the very top of it, her fingers now moving down over his legs, reducing the muscular limbs to the same kind of quivers his torso had just succumbed to. She then ran her hands up the leg holes of said garment onto his skin and pulled them off, going back to kissing across the line where the elastic had previously rested on his stomach, her tongue trailing across the skull and crossbones tattoo he had right above his pubic line.

But still she wouldn't gratify him by using her talented mouth where he needed it most, so instead let it wander back all over his stomach and up and down the inside of each thigh, using her forefinger to softly stroke his balls and watching his chest rising and falling harder and faster.

'Dying for it yet?' she asked, before running her tongue from the lower abdomen tattoo up to his navel.

'What the fuck do you think you evil woman?' he said, followed immediately by a groan when her head lowered down again and she flicked the tip of her tongue across the engorged angry looking head of his dick, slightly dark in colour from the amount of blood rushing into it as it became uncomfortably hard and sensitive.

'I think you can wait a little longer' she said, applying one last lick and hearing him growl with frustration before moving her mouth to his balls and slowly circling each one in a decreasing circle and back out again with her tongue, then moved it from side to side and back to circles again, increasing the speed until she felt lie her tongue was about to fall off but feeling gratified that what she was doing felt incredible for him; the deep throaty noises of satisfaction he made couldn't tell her otherwise. She'd never seen him so lost in bliss.

'Hmmmm, I think now's about the best time I could ever ask for a raise' she said with a little giggle.

'The shop's yours' he replied, groaning again and suddenly laughing. It was one of those kinds of pleasure that was so good that you couldn't help but exclaim in laughter, which was muted by complete silence as the feeling of his dick finally being sucked into her mouth cut off any other function other than to absorb how good it felt.

'Happy now?' she asked after hugging her lips tightly around the shaft as she moved her mouth back up again.

'Very' he breathed, resting his arms up above his head and closing his eyes as he felt Chloe's mouth close over the very tip of his dick and then push down until he felt the back of her throat against him. And to add to it after running her lips from base to tip and back again she opened her mouth and stretched her tongue out to lick his balls, moving in a way that also stimulated the by now extremely over sensitive head of his dick against her throat. The groan it prompted was like no other she'd ever heard, and knew Alice would be next door quietly laughing to herself if she'd heard, but at least she knew she was doing a good job; literally.

She slid her mouth back up to the tip again and then wrapped her lips around his thick bell end, circling the very tip slowly with her tongue. Shannon moaned deeply as his hand travelled down into her hair and gently pulled it as he closed his eyes tightly and frowned. As she began to lick her way up and down his shaft using the very tip of her tongue she heard a small moan escape his lips, and then moved her mouth back up to the tip of his cock and she wrapped her lips around it once more and gave him a long, hard suck, taking most of him into her mouth then gently sliding her lips back up again and flicking her tongue all over the very tip of his cock, concentrating on the slit with precision strokes.

He began to feel himself go light headed with intense pleasure and he could barely think clearly as Chloe's hand began to pump up and down on his shaft as she sucked hard on his bell end, stopping every so often to flick her tongue around the tip. He began to bite down on his lip and groan out as both of his hands gripped onto her shoulders, he was so turned on he wanted to pull her up and push her down hard onto his dick, but when he tried to move her she pinned his arms back down and gave him a smouldering look before carrying on, building up a steady pace before her hand and tongue began to move faster. She heard him let out a deep growl, pulling his arms out of her grip he held her head firmly and started to move his hips up to meet her mouth as it slid back down his dick, feeling himself starting to tip over the edge.

This time she had no choice but to be moved as his hands grabbed the tops of her arms firmly and he slid down underneath her, immediately pushing her pussy lips apart with his thumbs and sucking her clit between his lips as his tongue licked it from side to side. She let out a long gasp and closed her eyes, resting her head down on the mattress as she felt his tongue circling inside her pussy so lightly it almost tickled, then replaced it with two fingers as his mouth came back up and started to kiss her stomach. Quick as a flash he slid right out from underneath her and spread her legs open wider as he continued to lick her from behind, trailing his fingers up and down the backs of her thighs as he slid the flat of his tongue over her clit.

Chloe pressed her head into the mattress and clung onto the sheets as she felt his tongue work magic on her, swirling and darting around so fast she couldn't help but cry out loudly, her legs shaking as she felt faint from the intense pleasure. Just when she thought she couldn't take it anymore she felt him move his fingers to where his tongue had just been and slowly kissed a trail up her back until he reached the back of her neck. Before she had chance to turn her head and kiss him Shannon had turned her over onto her back and turned his attention to her bullet like nipples, then kissed her all along her collarbones finally reaching her mouth just as he slid himself inside her.

She then felt her arms pinned to the bed hard, his hands locked around the tops as he pressed them over her head so hard it hurt and began to do what he'd wanted to do to her since their quick encounter in the bathroom; fuck the life out of her. She wanted to scream her lungs out, yet was too shocked to even be able to make a sound as he battered into her so hard her head was hitting the wall behind the bed as he bit down fiercely onto her nipple, his hands still gripped around her arms, grunting and moaning as he buried every last inch of his dick inside her.

It wasn't until he grasped her nipple between his teeth and yanked it that she found her voice, and literally howled her head off in both the agony and the ecstasy it gave her before she was silenced with Shannon's mouth on hers as he let go of her arms and ran his fingers through her hair and down under her body, grabbing her ass cheeks and gripping her to him tightly as he felt her arms and legs lock around him, her body arching off the bed to meet his with every thrust.

As Chloe started to cum every muscle in her body went into spasm and her nails began digging into his shoulders as she moaned into his mouth, the bit on the corner of her lip as his mouth left hers and he started to nip at the goose pimpled flesh of her sweaty neck as he ground down into her, closing his eyes tightly shut before letting out a long 'Ahhhhhhhh' and sinking his teeth hard into her neck as he came, feeling her nails rip into his back and claw all the way down to his ass as she bucked her hips up under him and shook, throwing her head back and arching her back as she cried out and then collapsed back onto the bed, with a very out of breath and quivering man in her arms.

'YOU'RE NEVER STAYING OVER AGAIN! BAD CHILDREN!' They heard Alice shout from the next room. Much embarrassed laughter followed.

**Big, big thanks to those who continue to so loyally review my work, your imput makes ALL the difference! I can't tell you how happy it makes me to open my email box in the morning and see a stack of reveiw notification emails! Really puts me in a happy mood! :)**


	19. Chapter 19 Birthday girl

'Jeff?'

'Yes Miss Winehouse?'

'Don't call me that! I do not talk like she does!'

'Okay, Claire. What?'

'I erm, I......'

'Out with it'

'I think Chloe's gunna leave Mike for Shannon' said Claire eventually, looking over at Jeff as he turned his head onto the side to face her, eyebrow rising slowly.

'And how do you know this? Did she tell you?' he asked, resuming stroking her bare thigh where it rested over his stomach.

'No, but I think that's what will happen. When she came round yesterday she just sounded so unhappy when Mike was the topic of conversation. She's going to the Ink and Iron thingy in LA with Shan too, to and I quote 'get away from everything'. Mike'll be history by the time they get back, you mark my words. I can feel it' she said, nodding to no one in particular.

'What? In your waters?' he said, poking fun at one of her humorous expressions for whenever she had a feeling about a certain situation.

'You can laugh all you want' she began, poking her cackling husband in the chest with her finger. 'But I just know its gunna happen sooner or later, sooner I wager too. And besides, I have to feel it in my waters, because I don't have any crystal balls like you Hardy' she said, moving her let and sliding her hand down under his dick to grasp them gently.

'So what are they predicting?' he asked, smiling at her and laughing softly through his nose.

'A wax sometime soon' she said, laughing at the face he pulled.

'I'm never letting you do that again! That shit hurts too much dude! I'll stick to the razor thanks' he said, slapping her when she didn't stop laughing and then yelling when she thumped him right in the chest.

'I swear you're in the wrong job, you'd make one hell of a boxer' he said, holding a hand to his throbbing pectoral muscle and pinching her inner thigh, causing her to be the one who yelled.

'My daddy taught me well' she said sweetly.

'Yeah you have an advantage over most though, your dad was military police as well as a bantam weight' he noted.

'I'll never have an advantage over you though' she replied.

'Yeah you do, I love you too much to beat you up. Well, enough not to leave big bruises at least' he teased. She just rolled her eyes and then grabbed the pillow from behind her head and hit him with it.

'So anyway, back to our heavily tattooed friends. I think you have a point you know, they do look ridiculously happy around each other' said Jeff, before they continued talking about the possible fate of the affair. Meanwhile the female side of it was lying in bed next to her husband, but their behaviour towards each other was nowhere near as relaxed and happy as Mr and Mrs Hardy's. Since telling Mike about the trip to California he'd hardly spoken to her, and it was making the atmosphere between them tenser than the moment before a guillotine blade descended towards a neck.

Lying next to him no longer provided any kind of joy, no comfort or pleasure, just a constant longing to be lying next to Shannon. The man she was felt like she was losing herself to completely. He was the one her happiness lay with, not the man she was laying next to right then. She turned onto her side and hugged a pillow, closing her eyes tightly and waiting for Mike to switch the light off, hugging an arm around herself and remembering how it felt to lie like that with one of Shannon's arms around her, like he had done when she'd been lying in his bed just two hours ago.

'Goodnight' Mike muffled dryly as he turned away from her and pressed his face into the pillow, leaving her to lie there and just stare at the ceiling unable to fall asleep quite so easily as he had appeared to, snoring softly next to her as she reached for her ashtray and cigarettes to light up. She grabbed her phone and switched onto silent, tapping out a message as she blew a white plume of smoke into the darkness.

'Are you awake? xxxx' she typed. Literally a minute later she got a reply.

'Yup. Can't go to sleep now you're not here. Come back xx' she read.

'I wish I could, but how do I explain disappearing in the middle of the night?' she text back. It took her until the end of her cigarette to get her reply.

'Do you even care anymore?' And besides, 12.10am ain't exactly the middle of the night! Tell him Alice text you and got you to go to the bar for the 90's rock night or some shit. He knows how random you are at going out like that, and it pisses him off so just get your ass back round here! NOW! xxxx' she read, stifling a little giggle. Looking over at Mike, the miserable killjoy who was hardly speaking to her and then thinking of the way she'd often fall asleep feeling Shannon's fingers trailing around between her shoulder blades she slipped out of bed and jumped into her jeans, tucking in the small black cotton shorts she was wearing and carefully taking her dark purple hoodie off the corner of the open closet door to zip herself into.

She picked up her bag and slipped her cell in, taking a piece of paper from the stack pad and a pen, going over to the dresser by the window to use the light from the streetlamp outside to write  
'Gone to the bar, see you tomorrow'. Even though they practically lived separate lives these days she still felt she had to leave a note; or an excuse at least. After resting the note against the lamp on her nightstand she grabbed a clean top and underwear from their draws, picked up her makeup bag and silently left the bedroom.

She crept downstairs and took a pair of clean warm socks off the radiator and slipped her feet into them and then her New Rock boots, loosely fastening the brass coloured buckles and letting herself out of the house silently. She lit another cigarette and started her car, quick to reverse off the drive and roar away up the road, feeling the usual shiver of excitement at the illicitness of her vanishing act, but also just sheer excitement at being reunited with Shannon again.

'Ahhhh, much better' she said twenty minutes later, curled up naked in bed next to him, running her finger across the muscle ridges in his huge forearms.

'Mmmhmm' he said, moving his face nearer to hers and kissing her nose first, and then her cheek, then her lips. She lay there and enjoyed the silence, save the sounds of their kisses as she wrapped her arms around him, her whole body alive with a tingle of happiness unlike she had ever known. And when the silence was broken by his voice, her happiness level just continued to rise. She loved the way he just came out with things, but this was so out of the blue it really shocked her to the core as well as making her heart feel like it was about to leap free from her chest. If she was honest with herself it was the very thing she'd dreamt of him saying since the first time she was with him.

'Chloe, leave him for me. I don't know what else I can say than I've fucking fallen in love with you and I wanna be with you. I wanna make you as happy as you deserve to be, not watch you having to go back to him time and time again and be miserable. I just think...................no matter how fucking crazy it sounds after such a short time............................................that we belong together' he said, turning over and looking at her with eyes filled with a mixture of hope, love and nervousness. Looking into them, she couldn't do anything but begin to cry and tighten her arms around him.

'Say it again, please' she said, drying her tears as they fell.

'I love you'

'Again'

'I love you, I love you, I love you' he said, giving her a kiss on the head for each time he said it.

'I love you too, and as soon as we get back from California I'm going to tell him. I'd do it before we leave but there's so much I need to sort out, I wanna get all my things packed and gone from the house before I tell him too. Make a clean break straight away. I wanna be with you, not him, you make me so happy and even though this totally contradicts it I just couldn't be happier right now. I love you so much baby' she said, still crying her eyes out and sniffing heavily.

'Well stop crying then' he laughed softly, wiping her tears away with his thumb.

'I can't help it! You're too sweet, and I'm too happy right now! Eight days from now and everything's going to be perfect, or as close to perfection as I could ever get' she said, smiling at him as she leant her head into her hand, propping herself up on her elbow.

'If you don't wanna then I won't mind, but just to let you know if you wanna come live with me then this place is yours as much as it is mine. But I really do understand if you think that's too soon, not that everything else isn't but......' he trailed off, shrugging.

'That's so kind of you, and I really would love to but I think it might be best if we leave that part for a bit, get used to actually being with each other properly and out in the open first. See how things go. Is that okay with you?' she asked.

'Absolutely fine, so you gunna go stay with Alice or find a place of your own?' he then asked.

'Probably stay with Alice; she always said if I was a single gal she'd wanna live with me. I think she's lonely with no boyfriend and no kids around anymore so it'd be perfect for both of us' said Chloe, reaching up and giving him another kiss.

'Well technically you won't be a single gal, you'll be all mine' he said, a wide smile creeping across his face.

'I'm all yours already, I'm only his in name now' she said, sliding her wedding band off her finger and putting it on the nightstand.

'Yeah, that looks much better' he said, taking her hand and kissing it from palm to finger tips.

'Shannon?' she then said.

'Yes?' he replied.

'Tell me again'

'I love you' he said, watching her giggle and hide her face against his big chest.

'I love hearing you say that' she muffled.

'I kinda noticed' he replied as he laughed. She'd made him the happiest man in the world on that night, he finally knew he could have what he wanted so badly; her, all to himself. Eight days would come and go, but what he looked forward to most was what would come after that, a life with her he didn't have to hide.

'I just realized something! Happy fucking Birthday baby!' he said rather loudly after they'd been silent for a while, scaring the hell out of her.

'Arrrrrrrgggggh! Don't remind me I'm old! But thank you' she said as he covered her in kisses and then raced out of bed.

'You ain't old shut up dude! Back in a flash' he said.

'And where are you off to?' she enquired.

'To fetch your present of course!' he replied, darting out of the open bedroom door and by the sound of it heading down the stairs. He came back armed with what looked like a huge picture wrapped up in black and red paper and a silver ribbon tied around it.

'Don't praise my wrapping skills, I cheated and got Claire to do it! She's more patient with things like this than I am. I'd have ended up getting myself wrapped in too' he said, handing it to her as she sat up in the middle of the bed, turning the lamp on so she could see.

'Well unwrapping you too would have been one hell of a present!' she replied as he sat next to her and watched her carefully undo the ribbon and stick it to his head before tearing the paper from the corner to reveal what he'd brought her.

'OH MY FUCKING GOD! OH MY FUCKING GOD!' She repeated at high volume when she saw what was inside. It was a framed presentation of the gold disc of the 'Astro Creep 2000' album, her favourite by her favourite band White Zombie, signed by all members with one very special signature in the corner. 'To Chloe, Happy 34th Birthday, have a rockin' one! Rob x'.

'HOW THE HELL DID YOU GET HIM TO SIGN THAT?' she then shouted, still flapping with excitement as Shannon just sat and laughed, glad she was pleased with it.

'I have my ways' he said with a little shrug. 'So you like it then?' He asked afterwards.

'I fucking love it baby, thank you so much' she said, carefully getting off the bed with it and standing it against the wall, admiring it and then going back to the bed to dive on him.

'I thought you might. And now onto the next question, do you want birthday sex now or later?' he asked.

'I think that's a really silly question don't you boyfriend?' she replied.

'Okay so it's my turn now, say that again' he said, turning onto his front and resting his chin on her chest.

'Boyfriend' she said again, stroking his hair.

'Yep, definitely like that' he said, before reaching up and kissing his girlfriend. Even though she was still someone else's on paper, in mind, body, heart and soul she was all his.


	20. Chapter 20 Happy Birthday to me!

The sound of her cell phone blasting the voice of Borat shouting 'Call coming in from Kazakhstan!' was the first thing to wake Chloe in the morning as she lay still wrapped in Shannon's arms, who had just grumbled in a very unimpressed way at being woken up from the dream he was having.

'Damnit who's calling you? They just disturbed me dreaming about being stuck in between you Salma Hayek!' he exclaimed, making Chloe almost die laughing.

'You dirty bastard! Okay shut up its Mike' she said, answering her phone and trying not to laugh as he grabbed a pillow and pulled it over his face.

'Morning' she said pleasantly.

'How's your hangover developing?' he asked, a small note of amusement in his voice which surprised her. She thought they'd gone way past injecting any humour into their lifeless marriage.

'Quite nicely thank you' she replied.

'I have no sympathy, especially when you couldn't have been decent enough to wake me and let me know' he then said, all humour gone from his tone.

'I didn't wanna wake you after I'd just dropped off' she said, leaning back against Shannon's chest and pulling the pillow off his head, once again trying not to laugh at the silly faces he began to pull at her.

'Well I just wanted to let you know as usual I'll be with dad all day, and then I'm going out with him and my uncles afterward so don't make me dinner or anything' he said.

'Yeah okay that's fine. You go spend the day with your family and I'll just celebrate my birthday with mine' she said in a bit of a snappy tone.

'Oh my.....................I forgot your birthday, honey I'm so fucking sorry, shit how could I forget that? Well, I hardly see you these days so on some days I have problems remembering who it is I'm actually married to!' he exclaimed.

'Was that supposed to be funny?' she said, raising her eyebrows.

'I was trying to make you laugh yeah' he admitted, even though Chloe knew there was the mother of all digs just under the surface of the sentiment.

'Well it isn't, go enjoy your day, I'll sure as fuck enjoy mine without you around. BYE!' she said, snapping her cell shut and throwing it back in the direction of her bag down at the side of the bed. It began to ring again immediately, but she just ignored it and turned over to kiss Shannon instead.

'If I have anything to do with it you're gunna have the best birthday ever' he said once she had finished kissing him.

'You better fight with the three amigos over that one then, they always outdo themselves to make sure I have a good time!' she replied.

'Yeah I heard about the Jack Daniels fountain Alice got you last year, and Kerry taking you to a strip club and finding the girl with the biggest breasts in the whole place to give you a lap dance!' He laughed, remembering the story the man himself had told him a few weeks previously.

'I swear I didn't know where the hell to look! It was a good job I was so hammered or I'd have been dying of embarrassment even more!' she laughed, remembering it quite vividly considering she'd been so plastered.

'So apart from going out to get wasted with everyone tonight do you have any actual plans for your birthday?' he asked.

'I gotta go see mom and pops at some point, but other than that no' she said, rolling her eyes when once again her cell started to ring. She checked the display and saw it was Mike just as she thought.

'We're not speaking, stop calling me' she said before hanging up and having something pop into her head immediately. What if he tried Alice's home phone to contact her? And then as if my magic, like a genie being summoned from his lamp the lady herself rang.

'Happy Birthday beautiful!' she shouted down the phone, then held the phone away from her mouth as she blew a whistle. It still managed to half deafen Chloe.

'Thanks, I think. What's with the whistle?' she laughed, hearing Alice tooting away a little softer this time.

'Jenny left it here the other night after she'd popped in on her way home from netball so I thought I'd use it in my happy birthday greeting' she replied. Her daughter was a coach down at the local sport hall.

'Well it's certainly the first time anyone's blown a whistle to me on my birthday, so thank you for that. I was just about to call you actually, if my soon to be estranged husband calls can you tell him I've been with you all night? And I'm still there now but don't wanna talk to him? That kinda brings me onto my second piece of news. I'm leaving Mike for Shannon; we kinda got together as much as we can properly earlier this morning' said Chloe, holding her phone away from her ear when Alice screamed

'ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYESSSSSSSSS!' at about a billion decibels.

'Well that's one person happy at least' she said as Shannon burst out laughing at Alice's reaction.

'HAPPY? HONEY I'M ECSTATIC!!!!' she continued to scream. And so Chloe managed to calm her down a little, promising to tell her all when they met up later that evening before hanging up and switching her cell onto silent.

'I think it's about time I gave my man my sole attention for a while, since he has to share me with everyone else today' she purred,  
climbing on top of him and running her fingers over his chest.

'Since it's your birthday I think that should be the other way around really' he said, turning her over onto her back and lying between her legs, kissing her as he held her face in his hands. Both hands and lips then left her face to travel down the centre of her body, caressing her nakedness softly with the occasional bite until his mouth had settled between her legs, tongue running over her closed lips before delving between to explore.

'They say all good things come to those who wait. I kinda think what I've endured with Mike makes me deserving of lying here on my thirty fourth birthday with my gorgeous twenty eight year old boyfriend licking my clit' she thought, for the first time feeling very smug about it all. At that point she really didn't give a shit that her husband had forgotten her birthday; at least her man had remembered.

'Mmmmm happy birthday to me' she moaned, feeling the hood of her clit pushed back by his tongue as it circled the petite but potent bud of nerves agonisingly slowly, taking his time to speed up just to slow down again and repeating the action for what felt like forever, a live current of pleasure running through her body from her clit, feeling like it was ending in her chest and thudding out through the rest of her body as her heart began to beat more rapidly.

She moaned as her body arched towards him more, feet resting on his shoulders as his tongue continued to drag relentlessly across her clit, making tiny tingles build up deep inside her, body shuddering as the pleasure became more and more intense. She then felt him slide his middle finger into her pussy, hooking it around and pushing it deeply into her molten hot flesh before sliding another in to join it, hearing her gasp and groan in a long 'ahhhhhhhhh', which only got louder as he started to suck on her clit hard and not let go.

The continuous pressure of it being sucked so hard coupled with the fact his fingers met her swollen g spot with each thrust inside her made Chloe so turned on she could hardly see let alone think straight. She then felt the pressure lessen momentarily as he let her clit go and began to flick the tip of his tongue across it quickly, fingers beginning to move faster and match the pulse of the current of pleasure rolling over her body, so strong that an orgasm hit her out of nowhere.

'OHH, OHHHH, OHHHHHHHHHHHH GOD THAT'S GOOD!' she cried out, hands tangled in his hair as the speed he used his tongue on her began to slow down, laughing at the same time as how much she had begun to shake.

'Stop laughing at me, it's your fault!' she panted, watching as he kissed and licked his way back up her clammy body until he got to her mouth.

'I know, I just can't get over how shaky my tongue gets you' he said, his fingers still gently pressing around inside her.

'Yeah you can, you know you're talented stop being so modest!' she laughed, kissing him again and reaching down between their bodies to grasp his cock and work him fully hard before turning him onto his back and sinking down onto his erection, her pussy giving it a firm squeeze as it filled her to the hilt. She then spent the next hour rocking back and forth on top of him, both getting dangerously close to cuming where she'd just stop and let it pass before rolling her hips down onto him again, picking up a frenzied pace as she leant forward and kissed him, nails gripping into the hard muscles of his chest as she felt his pubic bone hitting her clit with each upward movement of his body against hers.

His cock seemed to press into every single erogenous spot mapped out inside her, sending a shiver through her body at the intense pleasure surging through her with no release, just a continuous build up as their breathing ascended to a rapid rate, both panting and groaning and pawing at each other as they kissed.

'What do you think you're doing back there?' she said, feeling his hand reach around and finger slide right up her ass.

'Being a very dirty man, who plans on getting even dirtier. Turn around' he said.

'For what?' she asked.

'Don't question me woman, just do it' he said. And so after giving his nipple a yank for barking orders at her she got herself into the reverse cowgirl position and then felt herself being pushed forward until she rested on her forearms between his legs, the tightness of the penetration causing them both to groan even louder as she felt him pumping up into her pussy with long firm strokes, replicating the pace of the two fingers he slid into her ass, smiling as he heard her begin to moan uncontrollably and feel her hand reach back and fingers start to rub at her clit.

'How's that feel gorgeous?' he asked.

'Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh wow!' was all she could respond, too far beyond being able to form words to describe how amazing it felt. He kept her pressed forward like that, looking down to watch his cock glide in and out of her hot passage, covered in her wetness while his fingers moved into her harder and faster, hearing each breath she took come out in a ragged groan that drove his own release on and out of his body so hard he could hardly register the fact he was about to cum until it hit him like a truck. He pulled his fingers out of her ass and gripped her hips, pulling her back until she was sat up again where she proceeded to slam down against him until he got there.

'SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT! OH FUCK CHLOE I LOVE YOU, OHHHHHHHHHH!' he roared, feeling himself cum deep within her contracting walls as she cried out and followed him headlong into oblivion, body falling back against his with a huge smile on her face as she tried desperately to catch her breath.

'It's.............only..........................ten forty in.......................the morning and..............................already I'm having the best birthday of my.....................life' she said in between big gasps for air, moving herself off Shannon and crashing out by his side.

'It's only gunna get better too' he said as he stroked her sweaty back and then jumped over her off the bed, picking her up in his arms and carrying her out of the bedroom.

'Okay Moore where you taking me?' she asked.

'For a bath, and to see how many positions are possible submerged in water' he said, big grin on his face.

'I've said it once already, and I'll say it again. Happy birthday to me' she laughed. And it really was a happy birthday for her too as she had a brilliant day. After her bath Shannon took her out to get something to eat and then waited in the car for her while she visited her parents. She wanted more than anything to go in there with him and introduce him as her new boyfriend, but would leave it until after she'd told Mike that vital piece of information. After that they went to collect Alice from home (who had booked a day off) before driving over to Jeff and Claire's since they had told Shannon Chloe's present was too big to take with them to her party later that night. And when she saw it, she got the shock of her life.

'Can I look yet?' she said, steered onto what felt like the stable yard concrete under her feet.

'Nope' said Jeff, standing behind her with his hand over her eyes, Shannon stood next to her with Alice. Both could hardly wait to see her reaction. And when Claire had lead a little black horse with a white face called Guinness out of his stable with a big red bow around his neck and stood him a few feet in front of her Jeff finally moved his hand.

'Happy Birthday mate!' said Claire, seeing Chloe's eyes widen and her hands clasp over her mouth in shock.

'You brought me.............you brought me a horse?' she stammered, hardly able to believe what was standing in front of her.

'Well, technically. His old owners traded him in for a younger model, he's absolutely sound as a pound it's just the lady wanted something she could do three day eventing on and he's just too small for heavy competition like that. And I'm too big to ride him so................ he's all yours if you want him? I know you said it was time that prevented you from having one of your own, but all I ask is that you come and ride him and look after him in the morning and I'll make sure he's all tucked up and fed at night, it's no bother' said Claire, patting Guinness' neck and laughing softly as she watched Chloe start to cry, Shannon laughing too as he hugged her.

'Always gotta go one better than anyone else haven't you Hardy?' he said as Claire walked over with Guinness and handed a still sobbing Chloe the rope.

'One little pony, all for you. And yeah I do, so what she fucking deserves it!' she said as the red rope was taken from her hands.

'Indeed she does' agreed Shannon, taking out his phone. 'C'mon let's get some pics of you and your new pet' he continued, watching Chloe vault up on her new horses back and cuddle his neck.

'Thank you, thank you both so much!' she said, eyes welling up again as she read the card on the ribbon around Guinness' neck-

_'Dear Chloe, have the happiest birthday ever, we hope you'll love Guinness as much as we do! All our love, Claire and Jeff xxxx'_

'You're welcome honey' said Claire, moving to stand behind Jeff with her chin perched on his shoulder and her arms around his waist.

'And what an appropriate name you have huh mister black and white boy! Yes you do, awwwww you're so cute!' she cooed, still sat on his back and fussing his silky mane as he snorted and then decided to use Shannon as a human scratching post.

'Erm, when you've quite finished Guinness' he said as he was knocked back about a foot by the horse with an obviously itchy face as everyone else just laughed. And for the rest of the afternoon the five friends had more laughter, Alice getting to know Jeff and Claire as they watched Chloe riding her birthday present around the little sand filled arena Claire had built to exercise her steeds in, all laughing at Guinness trying to throw her off when he got over excited at the jumps that had been put out, and even more when Claire put up one of the fences to 4ft high.

'NO! I CAN'T JUMP THAT IT'S TOO BIG!' She screamed.

'You might not be able to but he can! Go on get down there and pop him over it, see look at him he wants to do it!' said Claire, jumping over the arena fence and running towards Chloe with a massive whip in her hand.

'I'll chase you with this if you don't do it! Go on go for it, trot him until you approach it and just push him into canter and hold him back, then let him go for it at about four strides out' she added, watching Chloe move Guinness away fast and let out a nervous 'EEEEP!' as she did as Claire had instructed, feeling her heart begin to thunder in her chest as she pushed him into canter and approached the fence, her horse snorting with excitement as he got closer and closer, with her letting him go and feeling him surge forward and jump the fence neatly, Shannon standing to the side and getting a great shot of her in mid air over the yellow and black painted fence which he showed her when she was done.

'I still think you're better riding me though' he said afterwards as they lent over Guinness' stable door and watched him kick up his straw bed before having a roll.

'You would say that' she replied, giving him a little dig in the side with her elbow. And so on they went to continue enjoying her special day together, not yet knowing news that would come to Chloe later that night would put pay to her plan to leave Mike in eight days time.


	21. Chapter 21 Black clouds for Chloe

After leaving Jeff and Claire's place Shannon drove Chloe back to hers so she could pick up a few items of clothing (including what she was planning to wear that night) before they all went back to his and got ready, and then sat around drinking whilst waiting for the cab; and Chloe to finish in the bathroom.

'She's a nightmare' said Alice as she and Shannon stood waiting for her at the front door.

'Yeah, but I wouldn't have her any other way' he replied with a smile.

'I know, it's why I like you. You love her for her, not what you think she should be' Alice replied.

'Damn right I do, oh finally she fucking appears!' he said, seeing Chloe bounce down the stairs mid sentence. She looked to gorgeous for words, wearing a short black dress with a corset top and a heavy looking machine gun bullet belt slung low around her hips and her black knee high leather boots. Shannon almost wanted to turn her around and take her back upstairs.

'Come here hottie, wow you look killer' he said, sliding his arms around her waist and kissing her cheek as she smiled, thinking he looked damn good how he was dressed too; blue jeans, white shirt, black New Rock boots standing him way taller than her which she liked.

'Thank you handsome' she said, turning his face and kissing him on the lips.

'It's so much nicer to be able to wretch at watching you do that with him instead of Mike. I don't think I've wanted eight days to fly by so much in all my life!' said Alice, making them both laugh and agree with her. They couldn't wait to be each other's officially, but that night it would seem was their test run since Alice surprised Chloe by hiring the upstairs room in the bar and closing it off from the rest of the public, meaning she and Shannon could behave however they wanted since they were amongst friends; some who didn't know yet either. They figured with how trustworthy those friends were it wouldn't matter, the whole thing was only just over a week from coming out anyway.

'Okay so why does Shannon have his arm around Chloe like that? And why doe....OH MY GOD THEY'RE KISSING! WHAT THE FUCK?' shouted Chad as he stood with Kerry and a few other selected tattoo artist friends.

'Don't tell us you didn't work that one out sooner! Fuck me are you blind?' asked Kerry, he and Shane starting to laugh at Chad's face.

'NO! I HAD NO IDEA! So has she left Mike then?' he asked.

'Chloe told me she's packing off out of there as soon as they're back from LA' said Kerry.

'Woaaaah' was all he could say, followed by a low whistle as he watched them standing with Claire, Tina and Jeff.

'I have to say, I think you look a lot better with him than you did with the miserable creature you married! He was offensive!' exclaimed Tina, remembering back to the party at her best friends place when Mike had done his best to be rude to everyone after he'd hit the point of wanting to go home.

'Thank you, tonight's a dress rehearsal for the main show' she laughed, feeling Shannon pull her close and kiss her cheek, whispering 'Love you' into her ear. She was so happy she could explode; being able to walk around with him without hiding the fact they were together, enjoying her birthday with the man she wanted to enjoy all her birthdays ever after with too. It might not have been a long romance, and it may not have started under the normal circumstances, but it was the most intense and real thing she had ever experienced. The way she felt about Shannon, she'd marry him tomorrow if he asked her; if she wasn't married already of course.

Some might say what she felt was just the first flush of new love, or that she was purely getting carried away with the attentions of a younger, very attractive man, but she'd say to those people 'you're full of shit'. What she felt for him was 100% real, as Alice had stated he was the one for her, so she proceeded to have a wonderful night with him, slowly but surely getting more and more drunk as the hours passed, laughing almost constantly at either him or her friends.

So much fun she was having she didn't notice and also couldn't hear her phone ringing almost constantly in her bag, and a barrage of urgent text messages from her husband. She was too busy spending a lot of her night locked at the lips with Shannon.

'You're so damn hot' she purred, biting his bottom lip softly before sliding her tongue back into his mouth, thinking that she might want to call it a night a little earlier than planned. Sure, it was only 10pm, but her man looked so gorgeous she was finding it increasingly difficult to keep her hands to herself and was currently running her hand up and down his rock solid thigh under the table they were sat at, letting it trail across the bulge in the front of his jeans occasionally.

'I don't think I need to repeat what I've been telling you all evening, You should know how stunning you look' he replied, kissing her cheek and then her neck, his hand softly stroking the other side across the 'I've seen my fate' tattoo.

'God, how perfect?' said Claire as she and Jeff sat across the other side of the wide table watching their friends becoming more and more lost in each other.

'It's good to see him in love, suits him' replied Jeff, reaching for her hand.

'And it happened sooner than I predicted too' she said, leaning her head on his shoulder.

'Well at least no one's gotta suffer Mike anymore, least of all her. So yeah she cheated on him, but after knowing what I do about him I really don't fucking blame her' he commented, reaching for his drink.

'Neither do I. Besides, they look amazing together' she said, watching them move over for Ben and Gemma as they came over to talk to them, sitting down on the long almost sofa like seat that ran the length of the far wall of the room, eventually moving around themselves to be part of the conversation which consisted mostly of Ben telling a story of Chloe and Gemma's drunken shenanigans one evening when they'd gone out.

Eleven o' clock rolled around, and it was only while talking to Alice in the bathroom that she decided to check her cell after re doing her makeup and brushing her hair. She opened it to find no less than twenty five missed calls, eight new voicemails and twelve text messages; all from Mike. Deciding to listen to them then rather than later (if she had her way the only thing she would be listening to later would be Shannon talking dirty to her) she called her voicemail and listened to the messages. At first he was just desperately pleading her to call him, saying it was important, but by the time Alice had finished and flushed the toilet to re join her by the sinks Chloe knew why he'd been so desperate to get her.

'I'm so sorry I didn't hear my phone, I'll get a cab and be there as soon as I can' Alice heard her say as she washed her hands.

'Hon are you okay? You look white as sheet, who was that on the phone?' she asked as Chloe hung up and rested a hand to her forehead, closing her eyes tightly.

'It was Mike. He's at the hospital, his mom got attacked by three guys after her car in a parking lot earlier this evening and she's in a really bad way. She's been in surgery for the last three hours' said Chloe, looking stricken. No matter how she felt towards Mike, she adored his mother Jean and the news had hit her for six.

'Look I'll tell everyone and you go, call me as soon as you hear anything okay? I love you' said Alice, giving her a hug and letting her get out there as soon as possible. Before she left though, there was one other person she had to tell. And as she waited for the cab outside the bar she didn't care who saw him holding her in his arms.

'I hope she'll be okay, fucking bastards' he said, referring of course to Jean firstly and then the attackers.

'So do I, she's a wonderful woman. Needless to say Mike follows his father. Even though for some reason he adores me, which makes me feel even worse about............................everything' she said, her hand stroking his chest through the thin fabric of his shirt.

'We've been through this. You've nothing to feel bad about anymore okay? So don't you go there and start mentally bashing yourself. Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?' he asked.

'I really don't wanna rock his boat, not now. But I'll call you from the hospital okay? I promise, and just know that it's you I wish I was going home with tonight' she said, noticing a cab pull over.

'I wish you were too. I'll see you soon yeah? And if you need any time off work just say the word. I love you, I'll keep an eye on my phone too' he said, opening the door for her. She took a quick glance around and saw no familiar faces, and then pressed her mouth to his in a passionate kiss.

'I love you too' she said before getting in and shutting the door, feeling her heart sink as she watched him get smaller in the cab wing mirror. She'd already started to loathe herself for wanting to stay with him rather than be with Mike in his hour of need. But when she saw him standing outside smoking and looking like a broken man, there was something inside her that still cared enough to go and give him a big kiss and put her arms around him. She knew she didn't love him anymore, but she didn't want anything bad to happen to him, no matter how badly he'd treated her. She was still his wife, it was her duty to be there and comfort him.

'I'm sorry for ruining your night, and I'm sorry for forgetting your birthday. It was unforgivable' he said, feeling relieved just for having her there stroking his back as she hugged him.

'It doesn't matter now, how is she? And how are you?' she said gently, steering him over to a bench and sitting down beside him, pulling out her cigarettes and discreetly slipping her wedding band back on from where she'd stashed it in the zip up pocket in the lining.

'She's out of surgery and they're running tests. And it doesn't matter how I am, all that matters is her. And you listening to what I have to say. This happening to her, it's made me realize how fragile life is, and the more I go through it acting like a total, if you'll pardon the phrase, cunt towards my own wife the more I stand the chance to lose her. Or if something happens to me and I die without you knowing how much I love you' he said, kissing her cheek and showing her one of the most tender gestures she'd known from him as he pulled her up onto his lap and held her close.

'Shhhh, don't talk like that' she said, kissing his temple and feeling her insides prickle uncomfortably. His body didn't feel right against hers, bones pressed into her where she was used to feeling muscle, and unlike when Shannon held her she just didn't feel secure in his arms anymore. She lit the cigarette she'd been holding and watched the ambulances coming and going from the ER doors, medical staff rushing around to receive gurneys with the sick or already tragically dead.

Just then she felt his fingers move her hair from her neck and lightly touch the tattoo it had been covering.

'It really is a good likeness, I don't know why I couldn't appreciate that before' he said, kissing to the side of James Dean's image and resting his chin on the groove of her collarbone. And to think that it took such tragedy to awake the kind side of Mike she had once known and loved; but alas it was too little too late. No matter how nice he might have decided to be, with restored consideration of his wife, she was still in love with someone else.

They went back in to find that the surgery to save Jean's life had been a success, but that she'd been put into a medically induced coma. The severe head trauma she'd suffered meant they still didn't know the full damage to her brain. At that moment they were giving her a sixty percent of survival and recovery, but that she could slip into a coma on her own once they brought her around from the medication. At 1.25am she stepped outside for a cigarette while Mike continued to try and reach Jean's sister Cath from the payphone inside. While she was there she took the opportunity to call Shannon.

'I expected to hear you answer to a barrage of drunken noise' she said when she heard him answer, silence all around.

'I didn't feel that much like partying after you left. I've been home for about half an hour. So how is she? And how's my woman' he said, stretching out in bed and switching the film he was watching to pause.

'She's really bad. We just went in to see her, and she just doesn't look like Jean, they got her really bad. The doctors are giving her a sixty percent chance, but they think the likelihood of her falling into a coma is pretty high. And as for your woman, she's tired and just wishes you were here to hug her' she said, sitting down on the same bench and taking a long drag on her cigarette.

'Are you going to stay there all night?' he then asked.

'Mike will I think. He keeps telling me I should go home. A little drunk and upset doesn't go hand in hand' she replied, tapping the toes of her boots together.

'You should, you sound tired. I'd say come here, but I know that's probably not going to happen again for a long time now. Next week isn't going to happen is it?' he said, sounding sad and tightly wound at the same time.

'I can't do that to him now, I'm not made of stone. No matter how badly he's treated me, that's his mom in there in a bad way, I just can't do it but I know in the same time that's not going to go down well with you either, and I'm sorry. Just know you're the one I love okay? I love you so much Shannon' she said.

'I know you can't, there's no question about it. Okay so its gunna be tough but it'll be worth it in the end, you're worth waiting for' he said. He honestly understood the predicament she was in, and wasn't about to make it any more difficult for her by acting out about her decision. He loved her too much to do that.

'You're amazing' she whispered.

'So are you' he replied, smiling and wishing she was there, then telling her as much.

'I wish I was there too. Look I gotta go, I have to ring Alice' she said.

'Okay gorgeous, call me tomorrow when you can. Love you' he said.

'I will, love you too' she said before hanging up and crying. When Mike came out he assumed her tears were over his mother. He was half right at least.

'Go home Clo, dad and I are staying here tonight. Can you bring me some clothes and a toothbrush and stuff in the morning?' he said softly, squeezing her shoulder.

'Okay, I will. I'll come back at about nine okay?' she said, standing up to be pulled into a hug.

'Make it eleven. You need to sleep off some of the whisky I think' he said, touching a finger under her chin and lifting her head to kiss her softly. She had to force herself not to recoil. He gave her forty dollars for the cab and waited with her until it came, closing the door and holding her hand through the open window before the car pulled away. And even though she knew it was the most betraying thing she had ever done, she didn't go back to the house she shared with Mike that night.

'Isn't this a bit risky? What if he decides to go home after all?' said Shannon, holding her close with one arm as he reached out and re locked the front door with the other.

'He won't, and if he does I'll make something up. I know it's risky, but you're so worth it' she said, feeling herself lifted off the ground. She rested her head on his shoulder as she wrapped her legs around his waist, feeling a mixture of security and self hatred start to collide within her as he carried her up the stairs.


	22. Chapter 22 The best thing,the worst time

As predicted by the doctors Jean fell into a coma two days after she'd been admitted to the hospital, and showed no positive signs of coming out of it. The days she was under turned into a week, then two, then four, then six and before Chloe knew it two months had passed. Or rather dragged along, playing the dutiful supportive wife to a man she was no longer in love with and hardly getting to see the one she was. That's why she was glad for moments like the one she was sharing with him on her couch, just lying in his arms on a Tuesday morning, Mike having left for work three hours ago.

'At the risk of sounding boring and middle aged before my time I think I missed doing this the most' he said.

'So you haven't missed me sitting on your face?' she said, a snort of laughter following at the face he pulled.

'Well er, you got me there' he confessed, giving her a very sexy look and pulling her even closer into a kiss.

'I think I missed couch sex too you know' he then said after, tilting her head up to kiss her neck.

'I think I did too' she replied, her tongue running over his earlobe and around the thick hoop pierced through it. She then reached down and pulled his t shirt up over his head before instigating another frenzied kiss, hands running over each others bodies as they reacquainted themselves with the feel of one another, and all the passion between them that had been on hold since the last time they had been intimate five days ago becoming free flowing once more.

It only took the briefest of stimulation via their hands and fingers before both were more than ready, still half dressed as their bodies pressed together in a panting, sweating entanglement of limbs on the dark red throw covered couch. One of her hands ran between his shoulder blades as the other stroked down his body and gripped his ass, her hips coming up to try and quicken the pace.

'Ahhhh, not yet' he said, leaning his weight into her chest more to keep her still, his mouth scattering kisses across the side of her neck as he felt her nails gently tickle the back of his neck right in that spot she knew drove him crazy. She moaned softly as she felt him penetrate her with long, slow strokes, his hands running the length of her torso as his mouth moved to kiss her bra covered breasts, tongue running between them and back up to her mouth.

And so he continued to keep the pace slow, starting to withdraw from her completely after each inward thrust, the head of his cock just hovering against her opening for a few seconds before pushing back in deep and then retreating out again, each time he pushed himself back within her pussy feeling her clench like mad to keep him there, her hips once again starting to buck up in desperation for him to fill her. He pressed his body down against hers so she was completely pinned, finding it difficult to breathe under his weight, being literally twice the size she was and still kept each movement slow for as long as he possibly could, arousal starting to spiral out of control as his body finally relented and gave her what she needed.

He ran his hands down and pushed her legs open wider, with her moving one up until it rested atop the couch, the other draped over the side as he slammed against her full force, mouth at her neck as the animalistic groans she loved to hear started to emanate from his mouth, so low they sounded like they were coming from somewhere much deeper within his body than his throat, as well as the sweeter sentiment of 'I love you' he always whispered to her when they made love, or rather tore the shit out of each other as they were now, Chloe's short but sharp nails leaving some fresh war wounds down his back as she felt his cock burying itself insider her over and over without pausing, only quickening as desire flooded through both of them and for the first time came at exactly the same moment, too exhausted and overcome by the heat of the moment they had just shared to be able to speak at all for a few minutes after.

'Hon you home?' Came the voice of Mike from the front door.

'SHIT! GET UNDER THE COUCH!' Chloe hissed as Shannon literally disappeared as soon as she said it, her pulling the throw up, bundling his clothes and sneakers under with him and yanking her jeans on, doing up her shirt at the top only and leaving the rest (including the proper fastening of her jeans) to be concealed under a blanket she had just pulled over herself as he came in through the lounge door. Her heart was racing like a jackhammer as he approached her, pulling a curious face.

'Awwwww sorry baby were you sleeping?' he asked softly, sitting down at her side.

'Mmmhmm' she said, hoping her dishevelled 'I just got fucked' appearance was one she could pass off as the dishevelment of sleep.

'Sorry beautiful, I just popped back to pick up a file so I'll be out of your hair in a flash. Have you been to see your little horse yet?' he then asked, stroking her head.

'Not yet, Claire will have brought him in from the field for me though. I'll just go and groom and ride him later when I've woken up a bit' she replied, hoping the sleepy voice she put on was convincing enough.

'Alright, well enjoy the rest of your day off and I'll meet you at the hospital later okay? Love you' he said, kissing her lips and getting up to locate the file from the big box next to the CD player and then blowing her another kiss as he left. Shannon waited for the front door to thud shut before resurfacing.

'SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT THAT WAS TOO FUCKING CLOSE! I SWEAR I NEARLY HAD A FUCKING HEART ATTACK!' He exclaimed, letting out a long breath which puffed his cheeks out and pulling himself back into his t shirt.

'You were right, he is being strangely nice isn't he?' he added after hearing her husbands renewed jovialness for the first time.

'Yeah, he still says what happened to him mom was a wake up call. But I just wonder how long it'll last. Not that I'm gunna care as soon as she's better, I'm still outta here' she said, buttoning up her shirt and then moving herself onto his lap.

'Good, because then I can fuck you any time and any place and not give a shit' he said, beginning to undo her shirt again.

'Well it kinda looks like your doing just that at the moment' she said, shirt sliding down her shoulders as she felt his tongue lick the rise of each breast in turn.

'You can't blame me, five days is too long to wait' he said, yanking her bra down and sucking her nipple. And so it was on again, this time the long counter in the big adjoining kitchen being used as the location with Chloe finding herself put down atop it and having her legs forced open roughly once he'd tore her jeans down again, mouth covering her pussy and tongue lashing against every last inch of searing wet flesh as she cried out, hands reaching back to grasp the counter side whilst feeling his tongue localise itself right on her clit, flicking back and forth quickly.

'Mmmmmm, ohhhhhh damn that's good' she moaned, back arching as she felt him slip two fingers into her, pushing and dragging them in and out of her tightness, groaning as he sucked on her clit and felt his cock straining uncomfortably against his jeans and quickly becoming too much to bear. Standing up and removing them plus boxers he pulled her up by her bra and kissed her, hands unclipping the fastening to remove it and sliding his hands down her newly naked body to open and lift her legs, the head of his cock bumping against her as he impatiently sought entrance achieved in the end by Chloe reaching down between them and guiding him in, leaving her hand there to curl her fingers around the base of his hardness and stroke him as he thrust into her.

'You like feeling how wet I get you don't you?' he said, teeth letting go of her bottom lip as he looked down and watched her stroke his wet cock, replying a simple 'Mmhmm' then returning her hand over his shoulder, pulling him so close their bodies slid against each other as he drove into deep, making her cry out as he gave a series of aggressive thrusts before slowing back down to a regular pace again as he held her legs open and kissed her, tongue circling hers as they panted and groaned.

It was like the moment of almost being caught had worked like an extra stimulant to them, fuelling them both on as their bodies moved perfectly together, the lust that had pulled them together almost four months ago still burning brightly, as well as the endless, mad love they felt for one another.

'Mmmmm I love you' she purred, feeling his mouth at her neck, kissing and licking the sensitive goose pimpled flesh.

'Love you too baby, so fucking much' he breathed, returning his mouth to hers and groaning deeply as the pace became faster, pumping into her with complete abandon as her mouth broke from his and she cried out loudly at the pulse of warm tingles beginning to spread through her body until they turned into a burning hot wave that broke free over her body, gripping her senses as she gripped his shoulders, feeling his teeth at her neck and a hearing a series of guttural moans in her ear as he came moments after her.

It was just one instance of what was shared between them whenever they got chance to be together, which with the current situation said chances were few and far between. So when convenience did permit it, they enjoyed every last second. Even the simplest of things like being able to stand arm in arm as they did at Jeff and Claire's place a little later on after Chloe had looked after and exercised Guinness. She was sad that she had to visit Jean that evening, sad because she hated seeing her like that night after night and also sad she wouldn't get to spend the remaining time Shannon had left before he flew out to a series of matches in Europe with Matt and Jeff in the morning.

She'd be without him for two weeks, and the thought was just horrid. It'd be the longest she'd ever been parted from him and she was dreading it, so consumed with love for him she'd even sat up at night thinking of ways she could go with him, just stay out of view in hotels rooms and the like, anything to be with him still, but every idea just drew a dead end; there was no way she could do it without rousing suspicion, and also in her continual duty to Mike she just couldn't swing disappearing for two weeks, even if she did try and pass it off as going along to keep Claire company. He'd no doubt remind her that she was needed more there, which was a truth in itself she thought; except Shannon needed her too.

So before she left she stood clung to him just by the front door, the others leaving them to it after saying goodbye already. She held him so tightly she felt like she couldn't let go, and swallowed against a painful lump in her throat as she felt his hands stroking her back.

'It's only two week's baby girl, I'll be back before you know it' he said, feeling completely different on the inside. He didn't want to go without her but wasn't about to make things worse by revealing that.

'I know, I just hate missing you. Even though I've seen you for at least a little bit every day for the last week I've still missed you, and now I don't get you at all. I know it isn't long, but...................................I just wanna be with you and I can't' she said, crying at the end as she buried her face in his neck.

'Don't cry Clo, it'll be okay in the end, you know it will be' he said, stroking her hair and kissing her head. This was another reason he didn't want to go, because of everything that was going on her emotions were going haywire and he knew she was struggling to cope with it all, he didn't want to be away from her when she was like this.

'I know, and when you get back it'll almost be your birthday too, so I gotta take you out and getcha hammered. That's something to look forward to at least' she said, drying her eyes and trying to brighten the mood a little.

'I'll hold you to that' he said, turning her face and kissing her, a kiss they both took their time with since it would be the last for one for fifteen days.

'I'll call you in the morning before we fly out okay? I love you' he said, kissing her cheek over and over in that cute way he always did, arms encircling her waist.

'Okay, love you too handsome' she said, kissing him again before calling bye to the others and laughing as Claire came hurtling out of the kitchen for one last hug, standing with Shannon on the doorstep and watching until she had drove out of view.

'Erm, excuse me! Are we trying to cop a cheeky feel there?' said Claire as she shut the door and felt Shannon's hand slide into her back pocket, pulling her cigarettes out.

'No if I was trying to do that then I'd just do this!' he said, backing her into the wall and grabbing her boobs before running out of her reach as she aimed to slap him.

'Your girlfriend just drove off and you're misbehaving already! Aren't you supposed to be walking around looking like a wounded baby deer because you won't see her for two weeks? And didn't you quit again?' she remarked, walking into the kitchen and sitting down to continue reading the magazine she'd left.

'I'm misbehaving to try and take my mind off the fact she just left, hence why I'm smoking again, and don't worry the deer face will probably follow in the next half an hour' he said simply, but with a sad tone in his voice that both she and an also present Matt couldn't miss. He lit up and threw the packet and lighter back down onto the counter before letting himself outside to stand on the edge of the decking, leaning over the fence that bordered it from the grass below.

'Do you wanna talk about it?' he then heard, Matt arriving at his elbow and looking out to where Jeff was taking Obie for a gallop across the fields in the very far off distance.

'I thought you didn't wanna know' replied Shannon, exhaling a plume of smoke down his nose.

'I can't cut myself off from it anymore. This ain't Amy and Adam, this is you and Chloe and even I gotta admit you're fucking made for each other. I still don't think it's right what you've done thus far, but the sooner you two can be together the better. I know that sounds contradictive, but do you get what I mean?' he asked. Shannon nodded, looking side on at Matt.

'It must be hard, knowing you have to wait indefinitely before she can leave him. Hard on you both' he then said.

'It's worse for her than it is me. But I just keep it in mind that one day she'll be with me, and it'll be for a long time too. I think because of both of our experiences with saying forever before we find that part hard, but I know this is gonna last for the foreseeable' Shannon replied, this time Matt being the one to nod. Little did he know right then that the bonds that would knit him and Chloe together for their lifetime had already been formed.

Three days later and Chloe had just returned from visiting Jean after a long day at work (opening the shop early and then ducking out at 6pm to go and see her for a few hours), letting herself into Alice's home with her copy of the key and having Max followed by his owner come and greet her as she slid her boots off at the door. Since Mike would be getting up at 4am to head off to a conference in Seattle for a day they had agreed it would be better if she stayed at Alice's, if anything to catch up on some undisturbed sleep since she was so tired right then.

Working hard, having trouble sleeping with Shannon so far away from her and all the hospital visits were beginning to mount up. Chloe looked tired and preoccupied most of the time now, something Alice especially worried for. And a surprise guest who had just poked his head around the living room door as Chloe and Alice hugged. The latter of the women had thought way too much time had passed since it was just 'the family' for a night.

'Benny baby' said Chloe softly at the sight of Ben's sweet smiling face, his usual head of spiky blonde highlights messed to perfecting with wax she could smell strongly as she hugged him, his arms reaching around the both of them.

'Come on then my lovelies, family time with plenty of beer! How's that sound?' said Alice, ushering her best friends back into the kitchen and going to the refrigerator.

'I'll be back in a sec, just gotta pee' said Chloe, turning back and walking into the hallway and up the stairs, taking her bag with her.

One of the reasons she'd been so preoccupied was because of one thing weighing heavily on her mind. The fact her regular as clockwork period was eleven days late. After asking a nurse at the hospital if it was at all possible she could have a pregnancy test there, she was told by the cheerful trainee she could send her home with one just like the over the counter ones, assuring her they were just as effective as any hospital test.

She had given her two and told her that the most accurate reading was when done first thing in the morning, but since she had two Chloe just had to find out right then, so stood waiting with her back to the test while it developed on top of the toilet, the sound of the flush whooshing through her ears as she stood and bit her thumbnail nervously. After a minute had passed she turned and carefully picked up the stick to see a thick blue line staring her right in the face.

She was pregnant at long last, and even though it was at the worst possible time it was the best possible news for her. She just had to hope her babies' father would feel the same, but telling him over the phone wasn't an option. She'd just have to wait until he got back from Europe.


	23. Chapter 23 Tiny feet

Standing with the positive test in one hand and her cell in the other she contemplated if she should call Shannon or not, knowing it was only 1.35pm in Spain and he'd probably be calling her again soon anyway, or wondering if it really would be better to leave it until she could tell him face to face. She then thought to herself there were two people downstairs who could advise her in that choice, and put her cell back in her bag and the test in the bin before going down to share her news.

'You took your time' said Ben, throwing her a bottle of Coors.

'I've got something to tell you both' she said, twisting the cap off her bottle. She knew she was okay with one; her mother had drunk a beer every other day when she was pregnant with her and she'd turned out fine.

'You aren't really married to Mike and this was all one nasty dream?' said Ben as he and Alice laughed.

'Well right now I wish I wasn't, since I just found out I'm carrying Shannon's baby' said Chloe. Bang went Ben's bottle of beer into smithereens on the kitchen floor.

'Oh my god..........................' he said, flapping his hands at both the news and the spillage, standing looking stunned as Alice rolled her eyes and went to fetch cleaning tools, pulling Chloe into a huge hug on her way.

'Congratulations darling, I'm so happy for you. And now if you'll excuse me but I have to mop up the mess retard over there made' she said, pulling open the long narrow utility cupboard door and fetching out the dustpan and brush and also a mop, Ben still standing there in mild shock.

'How can you be sure it's Shannon's though? I mean really Clo, how? Is that fact not worrying either of you two? Because it's certainly worrying me!' he said, moving and taking the dustpan and brush Alice thrust in his direction and bending to sweep broken glass into it.

'There's absolutely no way it couldn't be Shannon's. A- Mike still insists on condoms and Shannon doesn't, and B- I've had a period since I last had sex with Mike. Two in fact, so the babies' father can only be one man' said Chloe as Ben looked slightly calmer at hearing it. They held off the rest of the conversation until the mess was cleaned up, before the three of them sat at the kitchen table and discussed the news in more depth.

'You do know this gives you a time limit don't you? Whether Jean is well or not in three months you're going to start showing, you have to finish it with Mike before then regardless. In fact if I was Shannon I'd want you to finish it with him right now. There's no way I'd want another man that close to my girl and my child, so I'd be prepared for him to say that to you if I were you hon' said Ben, with Alice nodding in agreement.

'He's right sugar; this isn't just you and Shannon anymore. This is you, Shannon and your baby. Mike doesn't belong anywhere in that picture; no matter how cruel you think it is to leave him right now you know you can't stay don't you?' she added. It was too much for Chloe to bear right then, the happiness of finally getting her wish to be a mother being bombarded by the reality of the situation. As glorious as it were that she held new life inside her, she had to admit it had backed her into a tricky corner and because of it and having no Shannon there for comfort, she cried and sat there continuing to cry in Ben's arms for the next twenty minutes.

'Should I call him and tell him now or wait until he's home?' she asked once she had finally stopped crying.

'If that was me I'd wanna know' offered Alice, reaching out to stroke her forehead from across the table in her usual motherly way, Ben still clutching her close.

'I think I would too, but at the end of the day it's totally up to you. You know him better than us' he said, Chloe pulling herself from his embrace and taking a gulp of her beer.

'Easy on that now mommy' he then added.

'One beer won't do shit, just like the one and only one cigarette I plan on having to calm my nerves before I call him. He'd wanna know, I know he would, but also I know it's gonna worry him too. Being away from me, from us' she said, putting her hand to her tummy as she pulled a cigarette from the pack she then gave to Alice.

'I won't need them after this one' she said, standing up and climbing over Ben's legs with her cell in her other hand.

'Free smokes and being told I'm gunna be an aunt, my days looking up!' she said, making them both laugh. Chloe crossed her fingers and pulled a hopeful face, her friends crossing theirs and mouthing 'good luck' as she turned and walked to the back door, letting herself out into the almost darkness of the warm summer night and lighting up for the last time as she sat down on one of the big green painted iron chairs in Alice's garden.

Inside although her nerves jangled, she really didn't think Shannon would take the news badly. Not with the depth of his love for her, affirmed to her whenever they were together. It was very soon into their 'relationship' if you could call it that, but like Ben had said it gave her one extra push to end her marriage with Mike regardless of his families' current circumstance. She had one of her own to worry about now. And just as she thought, he really didn't take the news badly once she called him and just came out with it.

'Wait a minute, hang on, hang on. Jeff! Claire! Come here! Okay I got you on speaker phone now, say it again' said Shannon as Chloe heard a hell of a lot of background noise from the bar in central Barcelona he had told her he was in.

'I'm pregnant' she said again, this time nearly being deafened of the voices of their friends both shouting loudly, Claire's scream the most girly she had ever heard from a self confessed 'non girly girl'.

'So you're happy then?' she giggled when Shannon returned to the phone.

'Hmmm now let me think about that for a few moments, the woman I love just told me she's having my kid................................................OF COURSE I'M FUCKING HAPPY!' he shouted, laughing at the end. Chloe started crying again.

'Oh here we go, old waterworks is off again! Well at least we now know why you've been so emotional!' he then said, hearing her sniffing and trying to stop her tears.

'I love you' she said, her voice pinched high as she held back a sob.

'I love you too, both of you' he said, still hardly able to believe he was going to be a dad. 'But you know what this means don't you? As soon as I come home you're leaving him. I don't want that asshole anywhere near my baby. I don't wanna sound harsh on you baby but this isn't just your decision anymore, if you don't tell him I will' he said seriously.

'I know, oh god I know that. I've just been sat out here thinking about it and I know it's going to destroy him but you're right. I don't want him near the baby either, I just want you' she said.

'Then the plan we worked out happens the day after I'm home. He goes to work and you go around and post it note everything in the place that's yours, then we'll all come round and help you pack it. Except obviously your stuff comes to my house and not Alice's' he replied, making her smile. She hadn't thought of the fact that now she was carrying his baby of course she would be living with him.

'Its gunna be your birthday though' she said, jamming her cell under her ear as she tied her hair back.

'Yeah and what's a better birthday present than getting you to myself at last?' he said, taking a sip of the water he was drinking and catching an ice cube in his teeth, crunching on it as she replied.

'Oh I dunno, you should see what I brought you' she laughed.

'I think what you've told me today is the best present of all. You've made me a damn happy man this afternoon' he said, the smile fixed on his face only becoming wider by the second.

'Good, happy Shannon is what I like best' she said, then telling him again how much she loved him and couldn't wait for him to come home, and help her move into her new one too; with him. They always say children are the highest blessing two people in love can ever have, and the tiny life she carried was also her brand new start, for now her duty and obligation lay with her baby and it's father, the tie of parentage added to the love between her and Shannon now outweighed any duty she had to her marriage. But still it didn't stop her from feeling bad about it, and uncomfortable.

Lying in bed next to Mike three days later she winced as his hand brushed her stomach for the briefest of moments before squeezing her thigh. She never imagined she'd become the kind of woman to lie in bed with her husband pregnant with another mans child, but that was how it was, for the next nine days at least until Shannon came home. And whereas the happiness she felt at being pregnant kept her going, she did still feel the guilt niggling away inside her that it would come at Mike's expense, to learn that his wife was leaving him for another man; she didn't dare tell him of her condition too. She knew it would cut him deep, even though he had stated he didn't want children she couldn't think of anything worse for him to hear than his soon to be estranged wife was carrying another mans child.

The hand that had been resting on her leg began to move slowly downwards, which broke her train of thought completely when it reached the leg hole of her underwear and tried to creep inside. She closed her legs and pulled his hand away, feeling like their roles had been well and truly reversed. It was her that now shied away from sex.

'Not in the mood?' he asked.

'Trying to read, and no I've got my period' she said, glancing away from the book she held to see him nod.

'Hmmm, it's always something these days' he sighed lightly.

'I'm sorry, it's just been bad timing' she replied, turning away from him to read the last little paragraph before turning the page.

'Alright' he sniffed, turning over and getting comfortable while she looked over at the clock. 12.01am; eight days until all this would be in her past. And the events of the morning would make that move all the more easier, for at exactly 9.03am Jean awoke from her ten week long coma.

'CHLOE? Wake up! Dad just called, the hospital rang him five minutes ago to tell him mom woke up at a little past nine am, get showered and dressed we gotta get down there, I'll drop you off at work after' said Mike, running through the bedroom and diving into his clothes at lightning speed while Chloe sat up and yawned.

'Here have one of these and I'll make you a coffee, you still look half asleep!' he exclaimed, tossing his cigarettes onto the bed, giving her cheeks a little pinch and kissing her nose as she smiled. Not for the gesture of affection, but for the fact Jean had woken up.

'No thanks, I've decided to quit' she said, pushing them away as she swung her legs out of bed and stood up. 'Coffee would be great though' she added, walking through to the bathroom with her cell in her hand. 'Jean woke up xxxx' was all she typed in a message she sent to Shannon. It'd either distract him from drinking or wake him up depending on what kind of night he was having, being just gone 1am in Germany.

Turns out he was still up, but just having a few beers on the balcony of Matt's hotel room with him, Jeff and Claire. It was news that came as a big relief to him; it'd make it much easier for Chloe to walk away now she knew Jean was on the mend. Shannon knew it was her welfare that concerned her most, rather than the fact her being awake made it a little easier to tell Mike she was leaving him.

'So do you feel different then? Knowing you're gonna be a dad?' asked Claire, watching him look out over the city of Manheim as its many lights glittered in the dark.

'Yeah, it kinda makes everything feel even more real' he said, turning to look at her as she climbed into her usual spot on Jeff's lap. 'You two'll make great parents one day too' he thought, watching his friends blend effortlessly into one another. Finally he had what they did, a perfect match but with the added extra of something very small and very special Chloe was looking after for him.

'I bet it makes him feel like more of a man' laughed Jeff, watching Shannon grin widely.

'I gotta admit it, it really does! I'm all like 'yeah! I put a baby in there!' he laughed, looking very proud of himself.

'He's got every right to look pleased, Chloe was on the pill so it means our little friend over there has super spunk' said Claire, making the three men roar laughing.

'See this is why I love your wife dude, she just tells it like it is' said Shannon, comically grabbing Claire and pulling her off Jeff's lap and onto his own.

'I can't wait to go home! I wanna see my woman!' He then wailed, still half laughing as Claire tried to get up but couldn't fight off his grip as he stated tickling her.

'Jeff he's getting all touchy with me! Beat him!' she shouted, trying to elbow Shannon in the chest.

'Shannon what did we tell you a few months back about playing with married women? Mike couldn't kick your ass, but we all know I could. Gimmie my bitch' he said, reaching out and pulling Claire back onto his lap unceremoniously.

'So are you gunna knock me up soon then or what? You know whatever Chloe has to have I gotta have too. We like to copy each other' she said, turning round and kissing Jeff's cheek while he pulled one of his legendary faces at her.

'Like you could give up smoking, drinking and horse riding for nine months! You'd be unbearable pregnant!' he said, watching her frown.

'I could cope' she said.

'Oh dear Jeff, looks like someone gonna start bending your ear there' said Matt with a snort of laughter.

'She can bend my ear all she likes, don't mean I'm listening' he said, receiving a slap in the chest from his wife.

'I think we both need a few more years of being big kids first' she then said, thinking aloud more than anything.

'Well I'm planning on being a jackass until the kid hits about twenty, then it can remember dad at his best' said Shannon, once again having it hit him all over again that he really was going to be a dad. He hadn't been able to get his head around it properly for the first day, until he'd received a picture text of a still very flat Chloe's stomach, with 'Hey dad! Miss you! Xx' typed beneath the photo. He didn't tell anyone that it had actually brought him a few tears too. He just couldn't wait to get back to the pair of them.

Meanwhile back in North Carolina Chloe, Mike and his father Trevor were sitting around Jean's bed and filling her in on what had happened. She had suffered a loss of memory over the attack, which was something everyone considered a blessing.

'So they were trying to get my car? Of all the things! It isn't even that new!' she exclaimed, and then held her hand to the side of her head as she felt a little dizzy.

'Take it easy mom, you've been out for ten weeks after all!' said Mike, reaching out and stroking his moms arm.

'Well from what the doctors told me of my injuries I'm just glad I slept through the recovery!' she then exclaimed.

'So are we. That was the only comforting about you being in a coma, the fact that you wouldn't be able to feel the pain' said Chloe, smiling up at Jean and trying to fight off the fact she had just begun to suffer the first signs of morning sickness, meaning her pregnancy was probably a little further along than she had first thought, although it couldn't be by much.

'And I'm just so grateful to all of you for being here with me while I was completely out of it! I can't have been much company!' she laughed, still sounding a little dozy which was to be expected.

'Mom, it's what families do' said Mike, putting his arm around Chloe and kissing her head. 'See, everything's turning out just fine. We're going to be great baby' he then whispered in her ear, making her feel tremendously uncomfortable as she sat there with her soon to be ex parents in law beaming brightly at her. The word Judas sprung to mind, for in eight days time she'd be gone, into the arms of the man she'd betrayed Mike for.

**Once again a huge thank you to all my reviewers!!!!!!! You REALLY do make all the difference, and make all the effort worth it to see such nice comments waiting for me to read! Mwah! xxx**


	24. Chapter 24 The last day

'Does it scare you that you'll be one year closer to thirty in two days then? Well technically one day now since it just turned midnight' said Chloe, sitting downstairs on the phone to Shannon flicking through the TV stations while Mike slept upstairs.

'It doesn't count yet, you're eight hours ahead. And no I can handle thirty' he said, running a towel over his wet hair as he sat down in the locker room, still wet from the shower he'd took almost straight after winning the match he'd been in.

'Ha ha, we'll see about that when you get there' she laughed quietly, switching to HBO and finding them showing a re run of The Sopranos and deciding to stick on that.

'And I wonder if you'll be so calm when you hit forty, or if you'll have a full on Chloe stress?' he questioned.

'Well as long as I have the same gorgeous man on my arm I'm sure I'll cope just fine' she said, hearing him laugh softly and feeling her heart bounce in her chest. She just couldn't wait to see him, even though he was landing at around 8pm the following evening she said she would wait until the morning of the move to see him, wanting to keep things as normal as she could right up until the moment she told Mike their marriage was over. They finished up the call with Shannon promising to call her as soon as he got back, and after that she stayed downstairs to watch the end of The Sopranos plus another episode before turning in, as usual removing Mike's arm when he flung it around her in sleep.

She just couldn't bear for him to touch her now she was pregnant with Shannon's baby. It didn't feel right to her at all, and she was just so relieved that as of the following day she wouldn't have to endure it any more, the only man whose hands would touch her body would be those of the man she loved, currently heading to a merchandise signing session in the centre of Prague.

One thing she knew she really must do before she did finish it with Mike though was to tell her parents. She had wanted to wait until after, but what with the baby and everything she just felt it best to come out and be honest with them, so that morning before work she kissed Mike goodbye at the door and headed to her own car as he headed to his, managing to battle her way through the traffic to get to her parents house. Her mother hadn't worked in years since her father's job provided a good enough wage for them both to live on so she would be home at any time. It was pure luck that she managed to catch her father there too on a rare morning off from his job as manager and co owner of a hug car and motorcycle service centre just on the border of Whispering Pines.

'Uh oh, here comes trouble' said Hank as he swung the screen door open to let Chloe in.

'Hey daddy' she said, kissing his stubbly cheek and moving past him to scoop up one of their Jack Russell's into her arms, blowing a raspberry on a happy looking Pip's tummy and stroking his silky ears as he lay like a baby in her arms, adoring the attention.

'And what do we owe the pleasure of such an early morning visit? Ahhh but I suppose with the horse you have to throw yourself out of your pit extra early to go and see him before you have work' said Hank, moving aside as her mother came in from the kitchen to give her a hug.

'Not today, I give him a rest on Fridays and Claire's friend Tina said she'd bring him in from the field and brush him over for me. She and a few of her other friends are looking after the stables while Claire's away' said Chloe, letting Pip jump down and sitting on the couch to welcome the other two of the three dogs onto her lap, and then having a battle to shoo them away again and accept her mother's offer of coffee.

'So how are you then my sweet? You look tired' said Karen as she put the mug of coffee she carried down on the table by her daughter and went to sit next to her husband on the couch opposite.

'I am a little, but everything's back to normal now Jean's been allowed to go home. They discharged her last night but she's still got to rest up for a few weeks before she goes back to work' said Chloe, her parents nodding and smiling.

'Anyway, there was a specific reason I came round today. I have something to tell you, two things in fact' she said, taking a deep breath and feeling nervous.

'Spit it out' said her father, smiling warmly at her and sensing whatever she had to tell them was making her anxious.

'I'm leaving Mike' she said simply.

'WHAT?' screeched her mother at the same time as her father mumbled 'At last' before sipping his coffee and acting completely unfazed.

'HANK HOW CAN YOU JUST SIT THERE? SHE'S LEAVING HER HUSBAND! OH CHLOE, WHY? WHAT WENT SO WRONG YOU CAN'T FIX IT?' said her mother, still at a million decibels.

'Mom, volume!' said Chloe, pretending to turn down an imaginary volume knob.

'Okay, I'm sorry but you've shocked me sweetie! I thought everything was fine with you two!' she said, exasperated.

'It hasn't been for a long time mom, and I think you know that as well as I do. Mike was never the right one for me' she said, with her mom still wide eyed and baffled.

'But..............but.............I, I just don't believe it! I always thought he was such a nice guy, dependable, the type to be married to' she said, shaking her head and looking at Hank.

'He was never the right guy for Chloe hon, I've thought that all along just like her friends have too' said Hank, who had always shared the same opinion of Alice, Ben and Kerry; in his eyes Mike was an uptight, sterile, jealous little pain in the ass he couldn't wait for his daughter to see sense over. Karen had thought him perfect husband material, being someone she saw as 'nice and sensible'. Sometimes you'd have trouble believing she married a big and heavily tattooed biker.

'Dad's right, he isn't the guy for me. It's taken me a long time to realize it but I really am sure in what I'm doing' said Chloe, feeling the momentum of the conversation escalating ever nearer to the next bombshell she had to drop on them.

'How can you be so sure? I mean what has happened between you that makes you so certain all of a sudden?' asked Karen. Hank was quietly pulling straws of his own, and had landed on the correct conclusion before Chloe had even opened her mouth. Not because it was what he expected of her, but because he knew what she looked like when she was in love, and since she was there to tell them she was leaving her husband, it obviously wasn't Mike who made her eyes light up like the way they just had as she unbeknown to him thought of Shannon.

'Well that leads me onto the second part. I've been having an affair with my boss for the last four and a half months, and we're in love with each other' she said, barely prepared for the volume her mother reached straight after the words had come from her mouth.

'CHLOE NATASHA DANIELS ARE YOU INSANE? YOU'RE THROWING AWAY YOUR MARRIAGE JUST ON SOME FLING? AND OH MY LORD! YOUR BOSS IS THAT GUY WHO WRESTLES WITH ALL THE PIERCINGS AND THE TATTOOS AND THE MAKE UP! OH FOR THE LOVE OF JESUS!' she cried, making Hank raise an eyebrow at her.

'Karen does it matter what the dude looks like as long as he makes her happy?' he asked.

'I wish you wouldn't say dude! Speak like an adult' she squeaked, fanning herself with her hand.

'Mom, he loves me and I love him. Forget that he isn't like Mike, because believe me I'm glad he's not! Mike has treated me awfully behind closed doors over the years, always putting me down, trying to bash my confidence, loathing anyone else who ever came close to me. He ruined this marriage long before I met Shannon. There are other points of the relationship that didn't work either, but those I really don't wanna discuss with my parents if you get what I mean' said Chloe, sipping her coffee and smiling inwardly at the way her dear old dad just sat there and took everything in his stride, and her beloved mother fussed and flapped as usual.

'But it's an affair Chloe! It isn't meant to last out in the daylight? Oh why can't you work things out with Mike! I mean you can't sit here and tell me this thing you have with what's his name...'

'Shannon' Hank interjected with.

'With Shannon is that serious can you?' she then finished.

'Well......................yeah it is. It's very serious, which brings me onto the next thing. I'm having his baby' she said, this time having to try not to laugh at her mother's expression.

'OH MY GOD! OHHHHHHH MYYYYYYYY GOOOOOOOOOOODDDD' was all Karen was capable of saying, getting up and heading to the drinks cabinet and pouring herself a large measure of gin.

'Easy blossom' Hank said, an amused tone in his voice.

'DON'T YOU DARE START WITH THE GIN BLOSSOM JOKES NOW! NOT AT A TIME LIKE THIS!' shouted Karen, looking like a rabbit caught in headlights.

'Say something then grandpa' said Chloe, watching her father get up from the couch.

'Come here' he said, holding his arms wide. She got up and hugged him, feeling his hand press gently on her stomach.

'Congratulations baby, I'm real happy for you. I know how much you wanna be a mamma' he said, kissing her head. This was typical Hank Waterstone; he went with the flow of any situation, and unlike a lot of parents trusted the word of his daughter implicitly. If she said she was happy then she was happy, he needed no further words than those.

'With a man she's only just met!' said Karen from her position still in front of the drinks cabinet.

'Mom I met him in January when I started working for him. Its July now' said Chloe, basking in the attention of her father as he continued to hug her. She watched her mother's mouth flapping for more words, yet none came so she just laughed and unwound herself from her father's arms and walked over to her, pulling her into a hug once she'd removed the bottle of Bombay Sapphire from her clutches.

'All I want you to do is be happy for me, because believe me mom I am. We both are. And as soon as everything is sorted out and I've moved out of the house and into Shannon's I want you both to meet him, see why I adore him so much and why I'm completely ecstatic to be having a baby with him. Really mom, don't be upset or angry because you don't have to be. My marriage with Mike is over as of tomorrow, that's why I wanted to come here today and tell you both' she said, feeling her mother stroking her back.

'Oh god in heaven Chloe, I really hope you know what you're doing' she said, finally breaking a little smile as she let go of her daughter and held her arms, looking her up and down and reaching out to pat her stomach.

'In almost seven months time the teeny little thing in there is going to come out your grandchild, so you have plenty of time to get used to it, I'm only just over six weeks pregnant I think' she said.

'I think I'll need about that long to take it all in' said Karen, finally breaking her small smile with laughter as she pulled Chloe close again, kissing her head and smiling over to Hank. The fact that her daughter was leaving her husband for a man a hell of a lot more reckless in her eyes did scare her a little, but the fact she was going to be a grandmother kind of overrode that fear, and if it didn't Hank made sure he spent the rest of the day after Chloe had gone reassuring her that their daughter wasn't the type of woman to take things like that lightly, and that whatever choice she had made he trusted it to be the right one for her. That was all that mattered in his eyes.

After agreeing to take another morning off work to come and help her move in the morning with the aid of his large old van he used to transport motorcycles in, Hank bid Chloe goodbye on the step with Karen and watched her drive off in the direction of work, where upon entering she ran as fast as she could through the shop and out the back into the bathroom to throw up. She hated morning sickness already.

'You okay there mama?' Asked Shane, holding out a bottle of water to her as she stood up and flushed the toilet.

'I feel ewwwww' she said, thanking him for the water and taking a few large gulps.

'Well you're appointment isn't here for another half an hour so at least you have some time to sit and wait for it to pass' he said as she leant back against the wall.

'Ohhhh I wish it worked like that! Morning sickness is random buddy, it comes and goes without a pattern' she said, proving herself right by having to duck out twice in the middle of giving her client her tattoo. Luckily the lady was very understanding.

'I was exactly the same with my two girls. They say if you get really sick you're having a girl, not so much then it's a boy. How far along are you?' she asked, watching Chloe slap on a new pair of black latex gloves and pick up the needle again to go back to the tiger tattoo she was doing down the lady's arm.

'Only about six and a half weeks, so going on what I've had so far I'm guessing the little monster in there might be female then' she said, looking down at her stomach and swallowing hard, willing the queasiness she'd been left with to go away.

'If you like ginger eat as much of it as you can. I used to snack on ginger cookies to cure my morning sickness, and the tea works well too' said the lady, wincing as the needle moved the sensitive location of her inner arm.

'I love it but my other half hates it so no doubt he'll pull plenty of faces about me stinking of it' she laughed, refilling the needle with more white ink.

'Let him pull all the faces he wants girl! You're the one who has to do all the hard work! He's done his bit, now all he has to do is sit back and wait' she laughed in response. Chloe agreed he could live with it in comparison with what she would have to go through and kept the ginger comment in mind as she carried on with the tattoo.

She did another eight sessions that day before it was time to call it a day, standing at the back of the shop with Kerry while he smoked before she locked up.

Being the boss's girlfriend meant she had an extra privilege now; she could call the shots on what time they locked up and since all appointments had been covered by 9.30pm that was when she locked the door, not expecting the man himself to re open it with his own keys while she was out the back with Kerry and nearly scare her half to death when he appeared in the doorway and shouted 'BOO!'

'BABY!' She shouted happily, literally jumping into his arms and wrapping her arms and legs around him, relieved and overjoyed to  
see him again.

'Shouldn't you be avoiding all this jumping around in your condition?' he questioned after kissing her, still holding her up in his arms.

'I don't think that's enough to make the baby dizzy' said Chloe, smiling so wide it hurt her cheeks and kissing him again.

'Let's just hope the other things I have on my mind don't either then' he said, giving her a quick double rise of his eyebrows and a massive cheeky grin.

'Don't wanna hear' said Kerry, cigarette between his teeth and hands over his ears.

'WELL FUCK OFF THEN!' shouted Shannon jokingly as he put Chloe back down again. He stayed and talked about how Shannon had got on in Europe for a few minutes before doing just that, knowing they would want a little time on their own before they left for the night.

'So what time in the morning do you want me to be there? Well I say me, me and the small army I'm bringing with me' he laughed, remembering just how many of his friends who all loved Chloe had been so keen to help her move out of Mike's life and closer into theirs.

'About eleven, I think I should have everything stickered by then. I already started packing away some stuff he wont notice so it's gunna be a lot easier than I thought' she said.

'Okay I'll be there at ten then' replied Shannon, making her roll her eyes and laugh.

'Insufferable' she said, shaking her head.

'But you love me' he said sweetly, batting his eyelashes at her before laughing and pulling her close into a kiss that still left her feeling breathless. He still had that mesmerising effect on her.

'More than you know' she replied, kissing him again before turning to open her car door.

'See ya in the morning then' he said, leaning in through the open window and giving her another kiss, then a little further down to kiss her tummy.

'Look after mom for me, it's only one more night then it's just us three okay junior' he said to the baby, making her feel tears well in her eyes. It was a lovely thing to watch.

'See you in the morning' she echoed, kissing him again and starting the engine as he walked over to his car. She really, really couldn't wait, and that night slept quite possibly the soundest night she'd ever slept next to Mike, knowing it would be the very last.


	25. Chapter 25 All mine

'Just to let you know I might be working until about seven o clock tonight, so I might not be home until half past. But I guess that doesn't matter since you'll be at work anyways' said Mike, straightening his tie in the mirror in the hallway, something that would be going with Chloe when she started packing in less than ten minutes time.

'I'm only in until six so let me know, just so I know what to do about dinner' said Chloe, standing behind him and brushing bits of fluff from the black suit he was wearing and trying to sound like everything was normal.

'Okay will do honey, see you later' he said, picking up his briefcase and turning to kiss her cheek before heading out of the front door. She stood on the step and watched until his car had driven all the way up their road and turned off onto the main highway, then slammed the front door shut with a bang and wrenched the pad of post it notes from her pocket and began to run around sticking everything that was hers. For things like DVD's and CD's she had spent the time rearranging them into sections, one hers and one his so she could grab them easily and dump them into boxes without having to sort through.

Running up to the bedroom she grabbed the two suitcases from under the bed she had already packed with an arsenal of her clothes and shoes and stood them by the door, grabbing the folded up self assembly cardboard boxes and tape she'd also hidden under the bed and putting them together to throw the rest of her folded clothes into, emptying the wardrobe in ten minutes and managing to remove the bedroom of all of her things in half an hour before moving onto the bathroom to pull her various bottles of lotions and potions into one of her large oversized bags and zip it up before going back downstairs to resume her post it noting. By the time Shannon arrived at just before ten she was almost done.

'Happy birthday gorgeous' she said, letting him in and closing the door as she gave him a huge birthday kiss and hug.

'Well, if that was my present I like it a lot' he said after their kiss had broken.

'I got it through here, c'mon' she said, taking his hand and leading him through into the lounge. They took a seat on the couch and she picked up the carefully wrapped up box and handed it to him.

'I'm afraid the real thing won't be delivered until tomorrow, I thought what with the madness of today it'd be best to have it arrive in the morning at home so in there is just a picture' said Chloe, watching Shannon open the small inch thick box and pull out the photograph it contained with an amazed look on his face.

'FUCK ME! YOU GOT ME AN ELECTRIC CHAIR! IS IT REAL?' he said excitedly as he looked on at the photograph he held.

'I take it from that outburst you approve of my choice of present? And yes it is real but obviously it doesn't work anymore. It was used in Columbus Correctional Institution in the thirties before it broke while frying some guy. Apparently he had to be shot in the chair when the electricity failed to re connect when they rolled the switch again, you can see where the bullet when straight through him and hit the back, see right there? Apparently it's been locked away for the last seventy or so years before the prison decided to sell it to raise money for the new wing they're building. I thought it would be perfect for a man fixated on all that stuff' she said, being hugged by a very happy Shannon who was thrilled with the gift.

'I really, really love it. Thank you baby, I love you' he said, looking at the picture and then kissing her. 'I don't even wanna think how much it cost' he then added.

'You're worth it' she said, knowing he was worth quadruple and more than the $9,000 she'd paid for it.

'I gotta say though, the best present is gunna be having you living with me. And getting to fuck you sat on this' he said, waving the picture of the chair.

'That was almost romantic, just for a second there' she said wryly before laughing and wrapping her arms around the top of his and resting her head to his shoulder. She was so in love right there and then everything else just seemed far, far away. But the reality of the situation dawned once again after they finished bringing the items from upstairs down into the hall, finished for the meantime.

'So what are you gunna wrap things like that up in?' he said as they stood in the kitchen drinking coffee and waiting for the others to arrive.

'Dad and Alice are both bringing bubble wrap and extra boxes so I got it covered' she said, still hardly able to believe the morning had come. And before she had time to ponder it the man armed with a big roll of bubble wrap and a few more flat unassembled boxes came in through the front door.

She was glad her father had also arrived early; it gave him and Shannon a chance to meet each other and talk a little before the whole house descended into chaos as a hell of a lot of people and their cars arrived. Jeff, Claire, Matt, Tina, Ben, Alice, Thomas 'T Dog', Kerry and even the man known simply as The Legend, Jeff and Matt's dad Gil and his truck to be precise. The assembled gathering got all of Chloe's things out in just one convoy heading in half to Shannon's place and in half to a storage depot fifteen miles away to stash the rest of the things she didn't know what to do with.

Amazingly, by 4pm that afternoon she was sat with the majority of her things unpacked in her new home, lying on the couch with her  
head on Shannon's lap while Alice was in the kitchen making drinks.

'So how'd you feel?' he asked, looking down at her as he stroked her hair.

'Relieved to be gone, but anxious of going back for the biggest part' she said, biting the corner of her lip.

'Are you sure you don't want me to be there with you?' he asked again for what was probably the twentieth time.

'I'm sure. That part has to be left between me and him, it'd hurt him too much to see it right in front of him at the same time' she said, sitting up when she saw Alice walk back into the lounge.

'Ouch, ouch, ouch!' she exclaimed, putting the two cups of coffee and one juice down onto the table, passing the juice and coffee to Shannon and Chloe before sitting down in the large armchair and blowing her slightly sore fingers from grasping two hot mugs so tightly.

'So how you feeling then blondie?' she asked, watching Chloe gulp back her juice as she sat propped against Shannon's shoulder.

'Really tired actually. Is it normal to get this tired so early on in pregnancy?' she asked.

'That won't start to hit you until you're about three months gone. I'd say your tiredness has more to do with everything that's going on more than little one in there' she said, pointing to her tummy where Shannon's hand rested protectively.

'Am I allowed to sleep for a week after all this is done with?' she then asked him.

'If you go anywhere near work for the next week I'll just drive you home again' he replied, kissing her forehead.

'Good, I think I need a few days to get properly unpacked and settled' she said, already loving being in her new home. It could have been a cardboard box for all she cared, as long as it was Shannon she shared it with. He left them to it soon after to go and get himself ready to begin his birthday celebrations with a few drinks at Matt's place before moving onto a club later that night, leaving Chloe and Alice to have a chat.

'Does it all feel real yet?' she asked, watching her friend curl her feet under her and cuddle one of Shannon's dogs Dragon.

'Not yet, I don't think it'll hit me until I actually finish it with Mike and walk away' said Chloe, watching Alice nodding.

'So what's the plan then?' she then asked.

'Well he text me an hour or so ago to let me know he won't be home until 7.30ish so I'll head back at about seven and wait for him. Then once it's over with I'm coming back here to get changed and grab a cab down to the club' she said, watching Dragon as he sniffed her hand and began to lick her fingers.

'Are you nervous?' she then asked, leaning forward in her seat as Chloe reached for her juice.

'A little bit. It's just trying to gauge his reaction you know? Whether it'll be sad or plain angry, I'm guessing a mixture of both to be honest' she said, Alice once again just nodding at her answer with a kind smile. She didn't want to press it any more than that, she could tell the nerves were beginning to build within her young friend, and although realized this was something she had to go through alone she really wished she didn't have to.

'Call me as soon as you leave okay? I love you, just remember that' Shannon said to Chloe as he hugged her by the open door of her car at 6.50pm.

'I don't think I could forget that if I tried' she said, rubbing her nose against his and kissing him before she got in and nervously drove away, back to the house she once called home. Letting herself in and finding the place empty she walked through into the lounge and couldn't shake the sense that now all her items were gone it felt like she was in a strangers house. Although she knew it had once been home for a long time, it now felt strange to be there. She went into the kitchen and made herself a herbal tea (she was trying to cut down on her caffeine intake because of the baby) before sitting down and watching the evening news while she waited for Mike to arrive.

As she sat she tried over and over to form some kind of parting speech in her head, some way of breaking it to him but really couldn't think of a good way to inform him their marriage was over.

Her heartbeat grew steadily faster in her chest as she saw the clock ticking ever closer to 7.30pm, and when the front door opened at exactly 7.32pm and he called out to her she felt like she was about to throw up with the nerves that felt like bile rising in her throat. Composing herself she put her mug down on the coffee table and sat up just as he entered the room.

'Hey, have you had a spring clean or something? You better not have decided to clean away my..........................' he said, trailing off when he noticed how much of the rooms contents had vanished.

'What's going on?' he then asked, looking down at her.

'Sit down' she said simply, noticing a frown forming across his forehead as he sat and gave her a questioning look.

'Mike there's no easy way of saying this to you and lord knows I've tried to think of ways to make it easier too, but there is no good way. The fact is I'm leaving you, our marriage isn't working any more' she said, watching him take it in and look horrified.

'WHAT? WHY? I MEAN.................................WHY?' he spat out; hardly able to believe what he had just been told and so stunned he could hardly form a sentence.

'Your attitude towards me, and your refusal to have a child with me. It's that simple' she said, her heart going into overdrive.

'B-b-but we've b-b-been getting on s-so much better! I don't understand! Why now?' he wailed in a slight stutter, his emotions getting the better of him.

'Mike, two months of niceness compared with three years of snide remarks and trying to make me feel like I'm worth nothing just isn't enough. It's too little too late, and I tried to talk to you about our problems, I really did. But all you could ever say was that everything was my fault. I got too many tattoos, I had untrustworthy friends trying to hit on me and make you jealous, I worked too much, I was selfish for wanting a baby, I was a sex maniac because I actually wanted you to show me some affection! How could you expect me to stay in the face of all that? You pushed me away' she said, remaining calm as he totally lost it.

'Chloe, we can work this out c'mon hon you know we can! We found a way back to each other after all those years, it was for a reason and that reason is we're meant to be! Please baby, please don't leave me' he pleaded.

'I'm sorry Mike, but I have to. And I want to. You see...................................................... there's someone else' she said, closing her eyes to the roar that came from his mouth.

'WHAT?' he screamed, turning to give her a look that was pure venom. She really didn't know what to say next.

'WHO IS HE? IS IT KERRY? IT'S KERRY YOU'VE BEEN SCREWING ISNT IT? ISNT IT YOU FUCKING SLUT?' He roared, grabbing the top of her arm and shaking her to make her reply.

'NO IT ISNT KERRY!' She screamed, wrenching herself free from his grasp and standing up.

'WHO IS IT THEN CHLOE? WHAT LOWLIFE HAS DARED TO FUCKING TOUCH MY WIFE? TELL ME!' He shouted, getting to his feet.

'Shannon' she replied. She then watched him advance the three steps between them and couldn't get out of the way in time to avoid his fist flying out and connecting with her right eye hard. She staggered back holding a hand to her eye and sat back into the armchair, Mike coming to her immediately.

'Shit I'm so sorry; I didn't mean to hit you! I'm sorry, I'm sorry' he said, trying to hold her to him.

'GET YOUR FUCKING HANDS OFF ME!' She screamed, kicking him away from her in the chest and getting out of the seat and away from him, still gingerly holding a hand to the side of eye where had caught the bone and temple. He just stood and looked like he was going between rage and sadness, his face crumpling in anger as tears poured from his eyes.

'WHY? WHY HIM?' he then shouted, falling back to the couch with his head in his hands.

'Because I love and respect him, because he treats me a million times better than you do. And because in turn he loves and respects me too, and cares about me more than you ever did' she replied, hearing him begin to laugh a sickeningly dark laugh.

'No he fucking doesn't you idiot bitch! Guys like him, they use cheap little sluts like you ten a fucking penny. You'll be back, when he's had enough of you. You're too old for him anyway' he spat, looking up at her with a glare. The nasty spiteful man she was leaving had well and truly returned.

'YES HE FUCKING DOES! YOU DON'T KNOW SHIT ABOUT HIM OR ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE! HE'S GIVEN ME MORE IN THE LAST FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS THAN YOU CONTRIBUTED TO OUR THREE YEAR SHAM OF A MARRIAGE! SO DON'T THINK TRYING TO FILL MY HEAD WITH CRAP IS GONNA WORK FOR YOU NOW MIKE! YOU CAN'T KNOCK ME DOWN ANY MORE! I'm outta here!' she said, picking up her bag off the back of the chair and marching towards the door.

'Chloe, please, WAIT! I'M SORRY! PLEASE JUST DON'T GO! I TAKE IT ALL BACK, EVERYTHING!' He wailed, following her to and then through the front door with his keys in his hand.

'JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! WE'RE FINISHED MIKE! OVER!' she said, wrestling with her car door as she tried to open it and he tried to close it, catching one of her fingers in the jam and earning him a hard slap around the face. 'GET AWAY FROM ME!' she screamed again, finally grabbing the door from his grasp.

'I'M NOT LETTING YOU GO! NO!' He raged as she got into her car, running towards his and hopping in to pull out and roar down the road after her once she had pulled away. He wasn't about to let his wife go without a fight, and when after following and battling through heavy traffic after her car he found out that's just what he'd get.

She just wanted to get to Shannon as quickly as she could so didn't bother going home to change first, knowing she had Mike following her made her nervous too and she just wanted to get back to the man she was safe with. Parking her car in the multi storey lot opposite Code, the club her friends and boyfriend were currently inside of she gave her keys to the valet guy and ran as fast as her feet would take her across the street and into the club, Mike hot on her heels screaming at her to wait. She managed to lose him in the crush of people queuing to put their belongings in the cloak room and descended the iron staircase at speed, holding onto the side of it while she scanned the bar area and saw her man and her friends all assembled in their usual place. What happened next spun out of control so fast she could barely register it all.

She saw Shannon break away from the rest of the group and move out to catch her in his arms as soon as he saw her running to him, tears in her eyes, and one of them looking very red and angry. Gently pushing her away he looked at her eye, his face changing to a thunderous.

'So he thought he could get away with smacking you one then?' he said, just as Jeff and Claire arrived by their side.

'He's following me, he's here somewhere' she said, wincing as the sting in her eye socket pinched at her. Somewhere turned out to be the bottom of the staircase he'd just run down, where he was met by an extremely angry Claire at about a thousand miles an hour.

That's about when it all kicked off as she launched herself at him, Mike pushing her away just for her to spin around and jump on his back, locking her strong legs around him in the kind of grip she used to stay on an unruly horse and punching him over and over in the side of the head, two burly bouncers getting there quicker than Jeff could and hauling her off him, dragging the pair of them out towards the side fire doors and opening them up, Shannon, Jeff and Chloe running over as people began to stop and stare.

'You know the rules Claire, c'mon calm down, calm down' said Joey, one of the huge bouncers who tried to contain one very angry Mrs Hardy.

'HE PUNCHED MY FRIEND! HE'S A FUCKING ASSHOLE!' she screamed as Joey pulled her away from lunging at Mike again and Jeff went over to help him calm her down. She was known for being a bit of a handful when her back was up.

'He did what?' asked Joey, turning to where Freddie held Mike by the collar.

'Let him go dude, you ain't on club property anymore, this is my shit to deal with' said Shannon to Freddie, who upon hearing of what the man held had done showed no more care and let him go, like dropping a seal straight into the jaws of a shark as Shannon advanced towards him and grabbed him around the throat, literally throwing him through the air and into a wall of the property next door, picking him back up again and punching him hard twice in the cheekbone.

'HITTING MY WOMAN IS ONE THING, HITTING MY WOMAN WHILE SHE'S CARRYING MY BABY IS SOMETHING FUCKING ELSE! YOU WANNA BE THANKFUL I'M NOT ABOUT TO STAMP ALL OVER YOUR FUCKING SKULL YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT!' he said, so strongly and menacingly yet barely raising his voice, probably the angriest anyone present had ever seen him. He ignored the fact Chloe had wanted to be sensitive to his feelings without adding salt in the wounds with the fact she was pregnant, but in Shannon's mind raising a hand to the woman he loved made him want to inflict pain in any way he could. The physical and emotional pain Mike was feeling right then was considerable.

'Baby, let him go. He ain't worth it' said Chloe, resting her hands on Shannon's shoulders and watching him drop Mike to the floor again, booting him hard in the stomach for extra measure and then turning and wrapping Chloe in his arms, leading her away.

'Chloe, wait! How the hell do you even know it's his baby? It could be mine!' Mike strained hard to say through the pain he felt at having his face smashed in.

'Mike, there's no way in hell this kid is yours. You know that as well as I do. Go home, you aren't wanted by anyone here anymore' she said as she turned back to him for a few moments before turning her back on him again as the bouncers let them back into the club, Jeff assuring Joey and Freddie Claire's outburst wouldn't happen again. As soon as they were back in Jeff went and explained the situation to their friends, him and Matt having to hold back Kerry and Alice when they tried to storm out of the club and go and find him while Claire ran around the bar (Tina managed it so luckily she could get away with this) and fetched a towel to wrap up a handful of ice in and hold it gently to Chloe's eye, kissing her cheek as she hugged her.

'Remind me never to get on the wrong side of you Claire bear' she said with a little laugh.

'No one hits my mates and gets away with it!' she replied with a shrug, Tina nodding as she leant over the beer taps.

'You should have seen her when a punter tried to grab my ass one time, she got in there before the bouncers and threw his ass out!' she said, making Chloe laugh again before heading off to serve customers.

'Firecracker' she said, taking the ice filled towel from Claire and holding it herself, the stinging really starting to kick in. Deciding three was a crowd she left them to it, returning to her husband's side to receive a huge cuddle from Alice for giving Mike a beating, while Chloe felt herself cuddled within an inch of her life too.

'Sorry for killing off the party mood' she said, putting the towel of ice down on the bar when it began to drip onto her purple hoodie.

'You didn't kill anything, if you've have left me outside with that asshole there would have been a death though' replied Shannon, jaw clenching again as he thought of Mike and what he'd done.

'And that's the last I wanna hear about him for tonight, I may not be dressed for it but fuck it, let's enjoy your night birthday boy' she said, suddenly able to sit and take a deep breath and appreciate that her rotten marriage was now over and the only time she'd ever have to deal with Mike again would be in the process of divorce. At last she was free to be with the man she adored so much, and live up to her word too. She got Shannon so drunk he could hardly see by the time she and Matt carried him through the door and up the stairs at 5am.


	26. Chapter 26 Moving on, or trying to

When Chloe awoke at 10am, just five hours after she'd helped carry Shannon through the door all she wanted to do was carry on sleeping next to him, cuddled up to his warmth as he slept off what she knew would be the mother of all hangovers. Turning over and shutting her eyes tightly she pulled the black covered duvet around herself more, and then heard a groan that indicated her man was awake, but not happy to be so.

'Urrrrgh, I feel like something curled up and died in my belly. And now it wants to escape' he said, heaving before flying out of bed and through the bedroom door, into the bathroom where he spend about ten minutes throwing up. He just about managed to clean his teeth and drink about five glasses of water before staggering back to bed, still feeling half drunk.

'What the hell was I drinking last night? I can remember starting on beer, but what just came back up then didn't taste like beer' he said, lying on his front with his head stuffed into a pillow.

'Bacardi and vodka, with soda to start before you started knocking them back straight. Then you and Matt had a contest to see who could down the most JD, I was surprised he could even walk well enough to help me get you out of the cab and up the stairs when we came home!' said Chloe, stroking his head.

'No wonder I feel like I'm dying, and have memory loss. I didn't embarrass myself did I?' he then asked, turning his head to the side and opening one eye to look at her as she switched the bedside lamp on to cut through the darkness the heavy curtains provided.

'Nope, you sure as hell embarrassed me at times though! You and your big drunken mouth' she said, shaking her head and laughing again.

'What did I say?' he asked in a groan, really having no clue as he could only remember up to about 2am before it all became a blur.

'You were telling anyone who'd listen, and I quote 'that's my woman over there, ain't she hot? I'm gunna take her home and fuck her up the ass so hard she won't be able to walk for days! She's loves that shit!' is what you said, oh and not forgetting you yelling 'CHLOE! COME SIT ON MY FACE I'M A HORNY LITTLE BASTARD!' she said, watching him begin to laugh naughtily.

'I was only stating the truth though!' he said, getting slapped in the side repeatedly. 'Stop it! I'm ill!' he then said, batting her hands away weakly.

'And now you mention it, so am I. Excuse me' she said, hopping out of bed bathroom bound. There were two types of morning sickness in the house that day, the one brought on by booze and the one brought on by baby, which is what they began to talk about once Chloe had returned to bed.

'So shouldn't you be going to see a doctor soon or something? First check up and all that?' he asked as she made herself comfortable next to him.

'Do you not remember me telling you I went to see my doctor and he told me to make an appointment with the obstetrics doctor at the hospital? It's this Tuesday' she said, giving him a little poke in the head with her finger.

'Shit, yeah I remember now. Sorry sugar, I'm all confused' he said; face returning to the pillow as he groaned again.

'Do you want me to fetch you some painkillers?' she asked, watching him nod.

'Yes please' he muffled through the pillow he was hiding his face in. She stroked his hair and kissed the shaven side of his head before going to fetch him some Advil and a glass of water, coming back and finding him lying on his back, still frowning at how ill he felt.

'Tell you what, let's leave talking until you've had a few more hours sleep' she said after he'd swallowed the tablets and heaved again, holding his breath to will away the queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

'Good idea' he said, pulling her into his arms and covering them up with the duvet, returning into sleep with her and praying when he woke up again his head wouldn't be banging with such ferocity. He would have something else to deal with that could be described as a headache though, or at least Chloe would first.

Deciding to leave Shannon to sleep when she woke up again at midday Chloe showered and dressed and left him a note to let him know she'd gone to see Guinness, and found him still fast asleep when she came home at 2.30pm. It was testament to how hammered he'd been since he wasn't the type of guy to usually spend all day in bed. She re covered him where he'd kicked the duvet off in his sleep and went to refill the empty glass by the side of the bed, putting it back onto the nightstand and kissing his cheek before leaving him to sleep on.

She came downstairs and grabbed the phone to call the mail office and get her post redirected to her new address effective as of then (she really didn't want to ever go back to the home she'd one shared with Mike) and was just in the middle of feeding the dogs when the phone she had just replaced on the cradle stuck to the wall began to ring out.

'Move it Oz! C'mon fatty I gotta get that' she said, negotiating the big pitbull who was reluctant to move out of her way with food present and reaching out to grab the phone.

'Hello?' she said, hearing nothing. 'Hello?' she asked again.

'Is Shannon there please?' came a voice she vaguely recognised.

'He is but he's asleep, can I ask whose calling and take a message for you? I can relay it when he finally wakes up' she replied.

'I really need to speak to him if you wouldn't mind. It's urgent. And who is it that I'm speaking to?' the girl asked.

'Chloe' she replied, frowning a little as the person didn't reveal their name.

'What are you doing there?' the girl then asked, sounding slightly perturbed.

'Erm, I live here! And I ask again, who am I speaking to?' she said, getting a little pissed off. The phone just clicked and the line went dead after that..............

'So did you call him?' asked Georgina as she watched Lauren come back into the room and sit between her and their friend Trisha.

'She answered. And she wouldn't let me speak to him, said he was in bed which is a lie! Shannon never sleeps in until this late, she just doesn't want me to talk to him!' said Lauren, fuming.

'Well, from the way they looked last night at Code I'd say they're together now, so you can't really blame her' said Trish gently. 'Did you tell her who you were?' she then asked.

'No! It's none of her business! She's supposed to me married anyway!' stormed Lauren.

'Doesn't look like is anymore though does it? Also I think she might consider it her business when it's her boyfriend you've decided you want back. I'm sorry hun I know that sounded a bit catty but it's just the truth' said Georgina.

'I was doing fine up until I saw him, then I just had all these feelings rush to the surface and I realized just how much I've missed him! I still love him and now he's with HER!' she spat with particular venom behind the word 'her'. Georgina and Trisha exchanged a glace that said 'oh dear' between each other over Lauren's head as she it down into her hands and let out a long sigh.

'I think you might be a bit too late sweetie, I hate to say it but he really did look happy' said Trisha softly as Lauren's face resurfaced from her hands.

'I can make him happier, and I'll show him I can too' she said, picking up her phone again and this time stomping out of the lounge to try his cell. He didn't answer, so she tried it another seven times before he finally picked it up.

'WHAT?' he shouted, annoyed his sleep had been disturbed by a number with no name assigned to it, meaning he didn't have a clue who the nuisance was until she spoke.

'Shannon, it's me. I really need to talk to you' said Lauren, her heart skipping a few beats just hearing his voice, remembering how gorgeous he had looked the previous night.

'What about? We haven't spoken since we split up and that was five months ago' he said, a little confused as his still hungover head tried to process actually being awake, let alone being on the phone to his ex.

'The fact that after seeing you last night it's made me realize I still love you, and that I'd do anything to try and get you back. Please can I meet you somewhere to talk about it?' she asked. Shannon wondered why the hell she had decided now of all times was the time she wanted to become a pest again. She'd bombarded him with calls and texts after they'd broken up, so much so he'd almost changed his phone number. He wished he had of now.

'I'm sorry Lauren but I'm with someone else now' he said, snapping his phone shut again. Immediately it started to ring again.

'NOT INTERESTED, BYE!' He said bluntly, hanging up only for her to call back once again. He sent the call straight to voicemail and turned the phone onto silent, deciding it was about time he got up and kicking himself out of bed to go and take a shower. He'd had another six missed calls by the time he was out and dressed again.

'Psychopath' he muttered as he padded into the lounge barefoot in just his white Adidas sweatpants and nothing else, finding his gorgeous lady sat crossed legged on the sofa adding black ink to the pencil lines of a flash sheet she was working on.

'Who's a psychopath?' she asked, looking up and kissing him before he sat down opposite her in the same cross legged fashion, tying his damp hair back.

'Lauren, apparently she saw me last night and decided she wants to get back with me. Crazy bitch' he said, moving closer to look at what she was working on.

'Oh so that's who my mystery caller was earlier! I'd just fed the dogs and she called the house wanting to speak to you, I thought I recognised her voice! She wouldn't tell me who she was though, and didn't sound best pleased to hear I live here now either, guess I know why now!' she said with a simple shrug.

'Looks like I'm in for some harassment then' he sighed. 'Speaking of which has Mike tried calling you today?' he then asked.

'No idea, I haven't switched my cell on for that very reason' she said, reaching out to where she'd left it on the table and doing just that. While it had been off she'd received twenty text messages and several voicemails, going from pleading and pathetic at first to nasty and spiteful at the end. Listening to the last one she had absolutely no shadow of a doubt that leaving him really was the right thing to do-

'I don't know who the fuck you think you are, but this time you WILL listen to me. I DEMAND you have a DNA test as you know that baby could be mine, you know that Chloe you vile skank. And if it is mine you can kiss it goodbye because I'm going for sole custody. I'm in the process of speaking to my lawyers right now to see you don't get a penny out of our assets, your new plaything has plenty of money of his own I'm sure you won't mind spending for him, and of course your payslip. More like payment you get for opening your legs to him you stupid whore. I wonder, was it a blowjob or a fuck that got you the job in the first place?'

'Nice guy isn't he? Real pleasant like' said Shannon sarcastically as he laughed at Mike's rant after listening to it. Chloe took her phone back and looked for his number, calling him and not letting him get one word in edgeways.

'Hi Mike, no don't try and talk I think you've said quite enough already! Number one, the baby I'm carrying is Shannon's without a shadow of a doubt, and how do I know that? Well just because you insisted upon a condom every time doesn't mean he did, and believe me I've had more of his cum inside me in the last five months than yours in the entire time we were married. Also, real man that he is and you are not, on average we've been fucking the living daylights out of each other whenever we can at least twice a day, sometimes up to eight times a day too whereas you and I had sex about three times in the last five months. Getting the picture yet? Number two, you can try and freeze me out of our joint assets but as the law states I'm entitled to half. See you in the divorce court, NEVER bother me again either you cunt' she said, hanging up as she and Shannon both died laughing.

'So I thought you weren't going to hit him where it hurts?' said Shannon, moving the flash sheet on her lap and reclining against her, head on her shoulder.

'Yeah, I wasn't until he punched me' said Chloe, watching Shannon move his hand to her bruised eye. Lucky for her the bruising although nasty had mainly darkened her eyebrow and temple, meaning at least she could actually open her eye. Mike had always been a shit shot with anything he had to aim for.

'Ain't it weird? The first day we can officially say we're together and we both get shit from our exes!' he said, looking up at her and moving his hand to the back of her neck, pulling her head down to his for a kiss.

'Well they can hassle all they like can't they? It doesn't mean we have to listen' said Chloe as right on cue her phone began to ring.

'No, it doesn't' he agreed, feeling her hands rub his chest.

'Besides, I can think of plenty of things to take my mind off it, and yours too' she said, her hands sliding down his stomach and into his sweatpants. 'Not too hungover for that are you?' she then asked, her hand wrapping around his dick and starting to gently work up and down, feeling it inflate quickly.

'Pfffft c'mon Clo! My name's not Mike, I never can say no to you' he said, moving her hands and turning over to lay on top of her, sliding the straps of her top down her shoulders as they kissed, her hand going back to where it had been, the other joining it to run her fingers over his balls at the same time, hearing him take in a sharp breath and moan faintly in her ear before gently biting the outer edge.

'Is that making you forget about your headache?' she asked, fingernails trailing slowly from his perineum to his balls repeatedly while her other hand squeezed his shaft firmly, working from base to head.

'Mmmmmm' he murmured deep in his throat as he kissed her neck, leaning his weight onto one arm while the other moved to pull the grey cotton dress she wore up, mouth latching onto hers and tongue sliding into her mouth while his hand slid between her legs. His fingertips began to tease her pussy through her underwear while his thumb circled her clit, biting her lower lip and practically growling with arousal as he felt the hand on his balls move to stoke the very tips of her fingers back and forth over the slippery head of his dick.

'Ahhhhh, that feels good' he moaned, feeling her lips on his neck at the same time as the pleasure from the very tip of his erection flooded his senses, a cold tingle travelling through him as he dug his thumb against her clit roughly and then moved to pull her dress off and move his mouth to her chest, kissing and licking the area between breast and collarbone while one of her hands emerged from inside his sweatpants and went to circle the back of his neck.

Feeling her fingernails there almost made it feel like someone was pouring a hot liquid down his spine, it always rendered him senseless when touched there and this time it triggered the reaction of him branding her neck in a bite, hearing her yelp a little in surprise and sucking on it until he'd a reddish purple mark behind, hand fighting past her underwear and pushing two fingers inside her until they were immersed to his knuckles.

And as they kissed, tongues rolling against each other in feverish agitation, battling for dominance as they gasped and panted heavily they were completely consumed by the raging lust that had brought them together in the first place, Chloe's nails raking down his back and feeling the muscles undulate beneath them, her other hand letting go of his iron hard dick to pull his sweatpants down, getting impatient and breaking their kiss to slide down under him slightly and grab the sides of each leg, unpopping the press stud fastenings with a yank and throwing them on the floor.

'I always knew I'd find a good use for those one day' she said as she slid back up kissing his chest, her mouth meeting his and feeling her tongue studs being bitten onto while his hands practically tore her underwear from her body, Chloe wrapping her legs around his body once she was fully naked and feeling his hands slide under her ass, dick pushing into her tightness with an audible groan from both, her muscles clenching him tightly and releasing as he slipped out again, repeating the same action for each movement inside her involuntarily, just letting her body do as it would when locked against his.

He kept the pace slow at first, wanting to feel the tension encasing him, each squeeze around him from contract to relax as his full length drove through her wet warmth, one of her hands once again at the back of his neck and the other tickling down his side as her hips worked in perfect upward motion to each downward movement of his, the head of his dick hitting her at a slight angle inside and making for penetration so deep and fulfilling she felt like her head had been piloted away from her own body; the two no longer felt connected because of the sheer ecstasy he inflicted upon her with each ministration from his dick, hands and mouth.

And all the time her phone continued to ring, but neither were really still at the kind of conscious level where it bothered either of them, anything outside of the moment they shared was muted out completely to them, the only things resounding through their ears were their moans, gasps and the noise of Shannon's dick pumping into her pussy that just seemed to get wetter and wetter with every thrust. Each time it dragged out more of her creamy arousal as her legs tensed around him, brown eyes burning into his as she panted beneath him, sealing her mouth over his and muffling the long satisfied groan that escaped his throat.

All she craved was to feel the pace quicken, body collide with his at a frenzied rate, yet he maintained the same pace as their mouths locked together, save the occasional hard sharp thrust that made her cry out, current of shudders running down her arms and legs.

Then she endured a change of pace, feeling his dick retreating and pausing for the briefest of moments before reconnecting with her over stimulated body, igniting the burning pleasure that throbbed from her inner walls as he did it again and again before not caring about pace, angle or depth and ploughing into her with all the pent up desire caged within him running free through his body.

'Ah, ahh, ahhhhhhh, ahhhhhhhhhh!' was all Chloe could express herself with as the white hot heat of orgasm began to ball up inside her, the energy gathering between her legs like a coiled spring waiting for release, feeling her clit being stimulated to a point of extreme sensitivity by his body as it pushed and slid against hers, her hot wetness becoming ever more welcoming as it constricted around his twitching dick as every breath he let out transmitted a deep gravelly groan, cuming hard as every muscle in his body tensed and then released, allowing him to drive into her harder and faster, making his release last longer as she shook and panted, finally cuming with a strong jolt of her hips against him, teeth biting the thick muscle connecting his neck and shoulder before letting go and falling in an exhausted heap with him in her arms.

'Chloe?' he asked, out of breath.

'Yes baby?' she replied, resting her head back over the arm of the couch as her chest rose and fell rapidly, pearls of sweat starting to trickle on her skin.

'You don't think all that shook the baby loose do you?' he said, making her snort then burst into laughter.

'Don't be stupid! Of course it won't!' she said, tapping the side of his head as he smiled up at her, looking cuter than she could ever remember.

'Just thought I'd check' he said, moving his mouth to her nipple and biting it, looking up and winking her. The look was definitely back to sexy, and her phone was definitely back to ringing again, but Chloe just didn't care since Shannon had just kissed her from her throat to her clit. She was getting over the fact her marriage was over just nicely, she couldn't give a shit if Mike's way was to continually call her, especially right then as she moaned loudly over and over at the beat of his tongue over the very tip of her clit.

'Fuck it, if he wants you to answer so badly he can hear this' said Shannon, grabbing the phone and accepting the call before sitting it on the floor beside couch, his other hand pushing three fingers into her and making her cry out, panting and moaning as she felt his tongue back at her clit while her ex hung up in disgust and rage that they were having the last laugh.


	27. Chapter 27 Nuisance

'OMG me and my friends saw you and Shannon hugging and kissing at The Road House the other night at the Clutch gig, are you guys together now? Love Regan and Kelly, HUGE Chloe Daniels fans!!! Xxxx'

'Are you and Shannon seeing each other?'

'OMG just saw your status said 'In a Relationship' instead of 'Married'! What's going on?? Love Melanie (you did my sun moon and stars tattoo a few months ago) xx'

'Is it true you and Shannon had an affair and that you're together? Can you post pics? Xxx'

'Are the rumours that you're pregnant true? If so, congratulations to you both!'

'All very sweet, but I just don't know how some people think they have the right to question me like this! Just because I'm in the public eye doesn't mean they own me!' said Chloe, sitting with Claire at the computer at hers and Jeff's place a month later, reading her seldom checked MySpace messages.

'I get it too sweetie, and hell there's no way I'm as notorious as you! The only time Jeff's fans see me in the limelight is if they catch me watching one of his matches from the crowd, The Hardy Show or just seeing me with him. They think just because you're a semi famous person they have the right to nose into your private life. And then there are cretins like her who just form their own opinions without knowing the facts!' Claire replied, reading a particularly nasty message-

'Leaving a good guy like Mike for an idiot like Shannon is about all you deserve you whore, and we'll be all sitting back and waiting for the fall out so we can laugh our asses off at you when you become just another girl to the long line of single moms who opened their legs too fast and ended up with nothing'.

'That's Sheena, one of Mike's friends. She always hated me because she wanted Mike for herself. I wouldn't expect anything less from her' she said, pressing delete and returning to her inbox to find about twenty other messages of harassment all from Lauren. She used the 'block user' function and deleted the lot without reading them, and then went to her blog control centre and began to type the following-

I've been inundated with messages over the last month, a lot good and a lot bad. So far I've kept a dignified silence over everything but to be honest I feel now is the time to speak up, if anything to stop all the questions and rumours flying around. Yes I left my husband for Shannon, and yes I'm very proud to say we're expecting our first child and we are unquestionably happy together. And quite simply that is all I want to say on the matter, and I thank everyone for all your kind messages, I just sat with my friend Claire and we read ALL of them. I have truly wonderful fans of my work, and the fact you took the time to send warm wishes is appreciated . And for those of you who could only bombard me with spite, well, I think that says more about the kind of person you are than it does the kind of person I am. And just to give something back, I've been asked for photographs of myself and Shannon, so expect to see a few sometime soon.

'There we go, questions nicely answered. Not that I expect it'll stop people from messaging me wanting to know more!' she said as Claire stood up and went to the window in the computer room to smoke a cigarette away from Chloe.

'And the way it looks right now there's nothing much either of you can do to fend off your exes either is there?' she replied, lighting her cigarette and cracking the window open wide, letting in the comfortable heat of the August morning. A month after them finally settling into a life together both Lauren and Mike were still finding ways to try and make life difficult for them, with the former following Shannon all over the place and the latter still swinging between wanting Chloe back and labelling her the biggest slut to ever walk the earth.

'Shannon's talking about putting a restraining order on Lauren if she doesn't stop following him. You know how he is, he can take a hell of a lot of crap before he snaps, and I think he's pretty close to that snapping point right now. But you see the thing is she isn't posing any kind of threat or anything like that, she's just being a nuisance with too much to say for herself when she does decide she wants to talk to him instead of just stand and stare so I don't know if he'd even get that far with legalities. And as for Mike, well his new trick at the moment is refusing to acknowledge the fact I've filed for divorce' said Chloe, changing a few things here and there on her page and replying to one of the nicer messages that was currently filing her with excitement; her pal Miss Katherine Von Drachenberg known to the world as Kat Von D was coming to visit, and do a guest spot at Gas Chamber Ink for a few days of the two weeks she would be here. After Chloe had told her all in a near four hour catch up phone call Kat had been absolutely stunned yet over the moon for her friend and just couldn't wait to see her, and meet the man that had made her so happy.

'How's he doing that then?' she asked, taking a drag on her cigarette and dusting ash from her yellow top.

'He keeps posting the papers I need signing to get the ball rolling back to me with a post it note attached saying 'You're still my wife, and I want you back'. I'm so glad I left him, I really am. All this might be annoying but I can live with it, I expected karma to give me a kicking for what I did sooner or later and it looks like this is what I've been dealt, but I'm so happy right now it just can't bring me down' said Chloe, affectionately resting her hand on her fourteen week old bump. After a visit to the obstetrics doctor she had found out her pregnancy was advanced a couple of weeks more than she'd thought, but still she only had the tiniest of a swelling of the baby she carried starting to show, who Shannon had affectionately named 'Smudge' since that's all you could really make out on the first ultrasound scan picture, just a little grey smudge inside her womb.

'Well let's face it, Lauren's got the intelligence of something that grows in pond water and Mike's a bitter twisted old cunt who can't take the fact his wife left him for a real man! So of course they're both going to try and make your life hell, but you've got the right attitude to deal with it. Did Jeff or I ever tell you about Sabrina?' Claire said, flicking her ash out of the window and reaching to pick up a fax that had just come through the machine; Jeff's wrestling schedule for the following month.

'No who was she?' said Chloe, logging out of her MySpace page and calling up Ebay. She felt like spending some money.

'A crazed fan who tried to break into our house several times, one time she even hid out on our land and jumped up from behind a hedge I was about to jump over on Obie and scared the shit out of him. Luckily I stayed on but she ran off before I could grab her, she followed Jeff to every match he ever went to and staked out the hotel too, putting on a crap British accent and trying to make out she was me! She sent literally hundreds of gifts and love letters to him as well, but we just ignored it all and in the end she got fed up with trying to come between us and as quickly as it started it stopped. I'm sure when those two prats will do the same when they wake up to the fact their games aren't working' she replied, coming back over to sit next to her friend and take a peep at the page she was looking at.

'Yuk, maternity clothes are so vile! I think I'll just buy regular stuff in bigger sizes' she said, before adding to what Claire had just told her. 'Yeah I suspect a lot of it with Mike is bitterness, he's not stupid and he knows I won't go back to him but he's just trying to be as difficult as possible. I can't say I blame him'.

'Well I'll do your share of blaming for you then, that man gets right up my nose. Regardless of the fact you cheated on him, I still think he deserved it' she said, pointing at a couple of nice tops on the screen Chloe was quick to buy. They moved on with a new topic of conversation, discussing the baby and the horses up until Chloe had to go to work, where one of the pains in the backside her and Claire had discussed was loitering across the road from the shop, crossing over when she got out of her car and lifted her gold framed aviators to push her newly dyed dark brown hair off her face as she locked the door. Because of the fact it was dangerous to dye hair while pregnant she had waited until she was over twelve weeks gone before dying it back to her natural shade with the aid of natural henna paste, meaning she wouldn't look a mess as the blonde, red and purple tones all grew out.

'I was wondering when you'd show up. I wanna speak to you woman to woman' said Lauren, standing in Chloe's way. She rolled her eyes and stared down at her before speaking.

'Well I'm one of those women, but where's the other one? Because all I can see in front of me at the moment is a silly little twenty year old girl who needs to get over the fact her ex has moved on and do the same before she makes herself look anymore of a fool than she already has. Get the message at some point before the next millennium Lauren' said Chloe coolly, moving past her and walking across to sidewalk until she reached the shop doors, hearing Lauren yell something about her being 'an easy lay Shannon'll get fed up of' before pushing the doors open and being welcomed by G in his usual way.

'Morning Clo, morning Smudge' he said, kissing her cheek and then bending to kiss her slightly rounded tummy.

'Hey dude' she said, giving him a little hug before coming round to the other side of the counter and seating herself down to look through the bookings for that day. She smiled when she saw the one down for 2pm as that was the time she was expecting her boy to walk through the doors of the shop after coming home from his last match with the WWE. Because of the fact he was sick of being underused and having to follow a schedule not of his own (which he could see him having issues with once the baby was born) he'd decided to push for a release from the contract he'd signed into and go back to the independent circuit, where he could pick and choose when he wanted to work or not rather than having it stipulated to him.

Her first client of the day came through the door fifteen minutes later, and as she walked him to her booth she saw Lauren was still hanging around outside, obviously waiting to see if Shannon was about to turn up. Chloe couldn't deny it annoyed her, having her show up outside work a couple of times a week and always seem to be in the same social haunts they frequented, sometimes even catching her roar away in her car from a parked up spot across the street from their house. But she was determined not to let Lauren's antics and steely determination to get back with Shannon come in the way of the fact she was experiencing the happiest time in her life.

As she'd stated to Claire, even though she felt like she was under continual harassment from their joint exes (if it wasn't one it was the other inflicting themselves upon them) nothing could ruin how content she felt. Even though she still had raging morning sickness so far she liked being pregnant, and although couldn't feel the baby moving as it was still too small often likened the feelings she sometimes got to butterflies in her tummy. Also, much to Shannon's extreme happiness she almost constantly wanted sex. It was very true that when you got pregnant your hormones raged to the extent where you physically craved sex and felt very pent up and frustrated when you didn't get it. Just telling Shannon what she'd had to do to relieve her own tension over the phone that morning had made them both ache to be reunited again after the three day absence.

'The one they call poison midget is still outside then' commented G about an hour later as he came over to Chloe armed with coffee and a tattoo mag between his teeth which he started to read sat cross legged on the side of her booth while she gave the guy in the chair chance to go out back for a cigarette once she'd covered his back carefully. Taking her coffee off the side after wheeling over to him she took a gulp before answering.

'Well she'll no doubt get a mouthful of abuse off Shannon if she's there when he shows up. I think he reached his limit with biting his tongue, she's really pissing him off' said Chloe, taking another sip of her coffee after taking her gloves off.

'And he don't act like that unless he's really, really fucking fuming' he replied, which was true. No matter how loud and in your face he may be, he wasn't quick to lose his temper. She agreed and carried on sipping her coffee while looking up at the leg pieces G was studying and thinking up ideas to turn hers into one continuous illustration down the side of her left leg, which she was planning to have after giving birth of course.

After the man she was sticking an inky needle into returned it was only another ten minutes before 'bunny boiler' as Kerry had named Lauren decided to end her stakeout and drove away. And only a further half an hour before Shannon turned up. Chloe was relieved he hadn't seen her, it made him nothing but very happy and very affectionate as soon as he saw her again, hugging her whilst kissing the side of her neck in the middle of the shop floor, one hand then trailing around the stroke her stomach.

'So how ya both been?' he said, kissing her forehead before she rested her head against his chest.

'Sick, sick, and a little sicker' Chloe replied, her hand running up and down his arm before resting on his shoulder, the other wrapped around his back.

'So if what that lady you inked told you is true, it's a girl then' he said.

'It's a puke inducer!' she exclaimed, making him laugh. And then, right on cue. 'Urrrrrrgh excuse me' she said, shooting out of his arms and towards the bathroom.

'Why do the call it morning sickness when sometimes she's still in there hurling her guts up at four in the afternoon?' said Kerry from behind the main counter.

'Maybe its mourning, you know m-o-u-r-n-i-n-g? She's mourning the fact she can't drink or smoke and go out partying with Ben and Alice until five am. She starts getting tired at about nine at night' Shannon replied, making Kerry laugh.

'Well as long as you're still banging her I can't imagine she's too depressed about the other stuff' he joked, this time making Shannon the one to laugh.

'I don't have any choice. I swear dude if you want a lot of sex get your woman pregnant. They're animals' he replied, laughing quietly through his nose as Kerry shook his head.

'And on that note I have nipples to pierce. If you wanna come over hon' he said, addressing a very attractive girl of about twenty two sat across the shop loudly at the end of his sentence. She walked into the booth and as soon as her back was turned Shannon mouthed 'lucky bastard' at a grinning Kerry before he swung the curtain shut, and then felt a hand slap him between the shoulder blades.

'I saw what you just mouthed you perv' she scolded, having him then reach out and grab her belt to pull her close.

'But it's you who going on her back as soon as I get you home' he whispered in her ear, kissing her cheek and letting her go as she stood and felt herself blush a little. He still had that effect on her, and nothing would change that or her fate as soon as she arrived home. Not even the fact that Lauren parked up outside once again about twenty minutes after they'd got back there and gone straight to bed.


	28. Chapter 28 What night brings

'Okay so we've caught my dad at it before and now it's the prince of punk's turn to be caught GETTING THE FUCK ONNNNNNN!' Shouted Matt into the camera as he, Jeff, Claire and a various number of their other friends assembled behind Shannon's house all whooped and cheered at the noises coming from the open bedroom window.

'So, Mrs Hardy, would you like to put your own personal spin on what's going on up there?' said Matt, pulling Claire in front of the camera.

'I would, and it goes a little something like this. WOOOOOOOO! With eight O's!' she laughed along with everyone else who then began to cheer as a bed sheet covered Shannon appeared in the window.

'Y'all need to get a life man! Quit bothering me!' he shouted, laughing and vanishing again to switch on the stereo to drown out any other noises that threatened to escape the open window, the summer night temperature made it too hot to simply close it. And so the assembled friends all waited outside, listening to the sound of The Black Crows filtering out of the window while their friends continued to enjoy themselves in bed............

'And you thought I was the one who was gonna end up on her back' said Chloe, pushing Shannon down to the mattress as she sunk down onto his dick again, her lips kissing his neck and feeling a vibration from the grumble deep in his throat against them, his hands sliding down her back to her ass.

'You were for an hour at least' he replied as he felt her tongue lightly flick across the dip between his neck and shoulder.

'Well now it's definitely your turn' she said, using her hips to work herself up and down on his thick hardness, shuddering at the feeling of the bulging vein on the underside of it pushing against every over stimulated gland deep in her slippery core, feeling his chest heave up and down beneath her as his arms locked around her shoulders and hands ran up into her hair as they kissed...............

'So, were you feeling inspired or something?' asked Claire as she was backed against a tree in the woodland that was just a five minute walk from the back of Shannon's house.

'Something like that I guess' Jeff replied, his lips meeting hers as his hands slid up over her ribcage under her top and onto each breast, thumbs rubbing her nipples until they hardened.

'You better be making this quick dude, before people with cameras come looking for us' she said, her hands sliding down his chest to undo the zip on his jeans and slip a hand in while the other came back up to wrap around his neck as her tongue tied knots with his, the urgency of needing each other right there and then fuelling the intensity between them. Glad she was wearing a skirt he moved one hand from her chest and used it to push her thong aside and slip two fingers deep into her pussy while his thumb rubbed at her clit, mouth moving from hers to suck a love bite onto the curve of her neck.

'Did you just hear something?' she then said, pausing her hand from travelling up and down his dick.

'No' he replied before biting the patch of skin his lips had just sucked on, starting to move his fingers hard back and forth inside her, hearing her moan in his ear as she forgot all about the sound she'd heard and concentrated on the fact that as usual, her husband was turning her on so much she couldn't possibly focus on anything else other than him.

When he felt his fingers had got her ready for his dick to begin pounding into her Jeff slipped his hand away and pulled his hardness free from his jeans via the fly before picking her up and moving his body closer to hers, chest pushing her back into the tree as he lowered her onto his dick. She omitted a happy grumble while running her fingers down his stubbly cheeks and across the lines shaved into his beard, staring into his blue grey eyes and feeling her heart jolt in her chest at the way he looked at her. She'd done right by marrying the sexiest man she'd ever seen, who had the most perfectly shaped and sized dick she'd ever felt, currently manoeuvring into her with long hard strokes.

Irritated by the feeling of his belt digging into her as his body drove against hers Claire reached down between them and undid it plus the button, making them slip from his legs and bunch at the ankles, glad he'd gone commando and grabbing his bare ass, digging her nails in as he moaned deeply, tongue darting out to lick across her throat and gently nip as her as he moaned again at the feeling of her heat contracting around him. She ran her hands up his back and tightened her legs around his waist more, exclaiming a long 'ahhhhhhhhhhhh' at the feel of his hands running up the sides of her body and pushing her arms up as they ran along the undersides, all the way until they were stretched above her head and his fingers had laced with hers.

Arching her back into the trunk of the tree she met every one of his upward thrusts with a forward buck of her hips, their skin slapping together as they panted and moaned, sucking and biting each others lips and tongues as they kissed, both drowning in ecstasy.

'Uuuuuuuhhhhh fuck honey I'm gunna cum, shit you're pussy's got me tight, ohhhhhh god!' Jeff exclaimed, burying his face against the side of her neck as he heard her beginning to cum, a series of soft moans followed by a loud cry as she yanked her hands free of his and sunk her nails into his shoulders, the pain intensifying his orgasm ten fold, feeling like hundreds of tiny explosions were going off at the tip of his dick as it was squeezed in wet warmth.

'Are married people supposed to have sex this hot?' she panted, feeling herself placed back to the ground and held tightly as her legs trembled.

'I think we're an exception' he said, his voice still deep and gravelly with arousal.

'I think we are' she said, rubbing her nose against his and then feeling him slide from her arms and kneel between her legs, his tongue tickling her outer lips before delving between them firmly into her slit and straight up to her clit, using his thumbs to spread her wide after lifting one leg over his shoulder.

'What happened to being quick?' she asked, hand running through his tied back blonde, green and black hair.

'I don't give a shit, I wanna go down on you' he said, before returning his tongue to her clit and flicking the tip of it over the engorged bud at a frantic pace, making her head thud back against the tree trunk as a low moan echoed up from her throat and out of her mouth. When she opened her eyes again and looked ahead something in her peripheral vision caught her eye, a little black shape darting behind a big tree and the swoosh the grass beneath them. But at that moment she didn't care what it was, it could have been a pervert watching and getting off to it, or just some kind of animal prowling through the darkness, his hot tongue felt too good for her to care what the mystery presence was.

Lauren could make out that the couple having sex three trees from where she had hidden were Jeff and Claire, and stopped her jog immediately to hide. Technically she wasn't doing a thing wrong, just merely going for a run through a wood that was popular with joggers, but she did see that she was becoming a little far gone in her quest to get back with Shannon.

'What the fuck am I doing out here?' she thought, the craziness of her almost nightly routine starting to make impact on her logical thoughts. Jamming her hands over her ears as she heard Claire moaning more frequently she hoped they'd be finished soon, she hardly relished in hearing the noises of a couple in the throes of sexual abandon; she wasn't a pervert.

'OH,OH FUCK YES, OOOOOOOH THAT'S IT, AHHHHHHHHH' Claire gasped as a hot wave spread up from her clit and down her legs, his tongue slowing steadily until it stopped and he kissed her clit a few time before standing up again and kissing her.

'Okay, now we can head back' he said, pulling his cigarettes from his pocket after pulling up his jeans, holding one in his mouth whilst doing up his belt.

'You can have these, you made 'em too wet to wear' she purred in his ear as she stood behind him and slid her thong into his back pocket.

'You do know it's just gunna turn me on knowing you ain't wearing them though don't you cutie?' he said, turning in her arms and kissing her from her shoulder to her cheek.  
'Yeah, but then you can take it all out on me again when we get home' she said, running her fingernail up and down the centre of his chest........

......'Shit!' exclaimed Lauren as she lost her balance and landed back with a thud and considerable cracking noise of woodland debris underneath her. It was loud enough for her to be heard. Getting up as fast as she could she jogged away quickly, legs powering across the ground of the wood until she was out of sight, or so she thought.

'I'm sure for a second there I just saw Lauren' said Claire, holding Jeff's hand as they exited the woods, the light fading fast.

'Ahhhh could have been anyone, you know how many people jog around here' he replied, squeezing her hand in his.

'Yeah, I guess' she shrugged, not really that convinced since she knew Shannon's ex had started to take what could be classed as an unhealthy level of interest in the man himself again. As soon as they got back to their friends all assembled in the garden though, all thoughts of Lauren were quashed as instead she had to deal with being jeered and whistled at.

'I'm not even gonna ask where you two have been! Her face says it all!' cried Tina, pointing and laughing as Claire blushed and hid her face in Jeff's shoulder.

'Okay so this episode of The Hardy Show will be known as, if you put a Friends' spin on it; The one with the sex!' said Matt into the camera, making everyone laugh before he continued to banter.

'And I'm guessing it hurts to be the main man of the show and know you ain't getting any!' joked Shannon, stroking Chloe's legs where she sat in his lap with her arms around his neck.

'I might be, just not at this exact moment in time' he said with a shrewd look on his face and a raise of his eyebrows. And so while the boys all stayed outside making a lot of noise and drinking beer the three girls went into the kitchen where Claire relayed her suspicions over who she thought the person in the woods was to Chloe.

'It really, really wouldn't surprise me if it was babe. She's acting a little bunny boiler-esque right now. I mean god knows how long she was waiting for him outside the shop earlier today, G and I watched her just standing there and she only left about ten minutes or so before Shannon arrived' she said, handing over a cup of tea and a beer to her friends, picking up a glass of heavily iced water for herself and sitting up on the counter, moving a big white pillar candle over out of her way.

'You know what bugs me the most though? I never once got the whole 'crazy girl' vibe off of her, ever. And even though she isn't the most intelligent girl in the world she isn't academically stupid, I mean she is training to be a nurse so that kinda proves she had to be bright on at least some level. I do wonder why people act like this, seemingly not realizing their actions are making them look like a complete nutter!' replied Claire, sipping her hot tea as she leant on her elbows on the counter opposite to where Chloe was sat cross legged.

'When you're blindly in love with someone you don't listen to reason though do you? I mean take you and Jeff for example, your mom had a fit when you told her you were moving thousands of miles away to marry a man you'd only known for four months and you didn't listen to her because you were so in love with Jeff, and while I know you two were meant to be its along the same lines. I'm not defending her at all, I think she needs to get a life and leave you two be but that's just the way I see it. Love makes you illogical' said Tina, wiping the condensation from her bottle of beer with a heavily jewelled finger.

'Well just as long as she doesn't decide to be anything more than a nuisance I'm sure I'll cope until she's worked it out of her system. Just as long as I don't come home to find him in a pot, he's the closest thing we have to a rabbit' said Chloe, pointing at Dragon who had just scuttled in from the back yard for a drink.

'Or the pink plastic thing you have upstairs' snickered Claire.

'If she touches that she dies' laughed Chloe, before they moved on from talking about 'loony Lauren' as Tina had dubbed her.

'Well you are a horny pregnant woman, and if you keep on going at Shannon the way you are I think you'll need to use that more often! The poor guy looks exhausted these days!' laughed Tina, making Chloe grin widely.

'He loves it, he says he's never had so much sex in all his life and if this is the way being pregnant makes me then he wants a football team of kids!' she laughed in reply.

'So is it really that bad then? Are we talking complete and utter uncontrollable urges here? I get those already! God knows what I'd be like if I was pregnant' commented Claire.

'I don't think we'd see you or Jeff for the duration! And yes it really is, it's just like you get this compulsion for sex and you can't rest until you've had it!' she replied.

'Cock compulsion, I like it' said Claire, making Tina throw her head of blue and yellow braids back and laugh her ass off along with Chloe, who's compulsiveness for what her other half kept in his boxers was far from being over.

'You're gunna be the death of me, you really fucking are' chuckled Shannon as soon as he'd closed the front door on their group of friends later that night, having been backed into it by his horny girlfriend.

'But at least you'll die doing someone you love' she said, sinking to her knees and undoing his belt as his chuckle turned into a full blown guffaw of a laugh.

'I can't argue with that.......................................fuck, or that' he said, feeling his dick sucked firmly between her lips about halfway through his sentence.

'I didn't think you would' was all she replied before going back to it again. They didn't make it up the stairs for another hour that night........


	29. Chapter 29 Lauren's awakening

'So what are your plans today apart from spending time with your mom?' asked Shannon as he propped himself up on an elbow, fingers trailing across the curves of Chloe's nakedness beside him.

'I'm just gonna spend the day with her I think, take her up to see Guinness and then go for a run and have lunch and the like. I wanna try and keep fit still and since you've banned me from riding him I think jogging will do nicely, and mom loves to jog so it makes sense. I think she's finally psyched herself up enough to meet you without having a meltdown now too; dad's been singing your praises' said Chloe, turning her head and kissing his chest.

'Is she still scared of me then?' he asked, amused as ever by her mother's shyness to meet him.

'A little bit. According to dad she signed up on the website and sat and watched The Hardy Show for an hour with her hands over her eyes, looking between her fingers and saying 'He's crazy!' over and over while Hank just laughed and said he thinks you're great' said Chloe, picturing her mother sat there looking dumbfounded at Shannon's sense of humour and fun.

'Well I promise not to freak her out too much, I think finding out I knocked her daughter up was enough for her' he said, laughing loudly and trying to dodge the well aimed slap to his chest she gave.

'Such a wonderful way to put it, knocked her daughter up' she said, shaking her head as she laughed softly.

'Well I did!' he said, looking proud of himself. She just continued to shake her head and laugh, enjoying the last twenty minutes she had him in bed for before he had to get up and go for a workout with Matt and Jeff ahead of his WSW title fight in three weeks time. And so after enjoying the last of their morning cuddles, watching him with joy as he shifted down the bed to stroke her tummy and talk to their baby as he liked to do Chloe got herself showered and dressed and kissed the love of her life goodbye, content to tidy up the house while she waited for her mother to arrive at 11am.

'Good morning hun' said her mother brightly when Chloe opened the front door at 11.03 exactly, surrounded by three barking dogs jumping all over their visitor.

'Hey ma, welcome to Satan's lair' she joked, making her mother roll her eyes as she gave fuss to Oz who had jumped up and implanted his paws into her stomach.

'How long have I got before Satan gets back then?' she managed to joke finally. Her husband's praise of the man who had broken her daughter's marriage had finally started to sink in with Karen.

'About four hours, he's doing Hardy Show stuff after the gym' she replied, closing the front door and walking through to the longue with her mom. They decided to have a drink before heading out for the woods, deciding to leave the dogs in the house since the little ones inevitably always ran off while Oz just barked at everything. Walking at a steady pace to warm up they stretched and swung their arms in the hot morning sun and engaged in conversation regarding Chloe's new life.  
'So I guess I don't have to ask you if you're happier now do I? You look more alight than I've ever seen you, even if it is with someone whose antics make me rather uneasy' said Karen with a little smile.

'He's a great guy mom. That's just one side you see of him, and he is a larger than life kinda person, but there are other elements to him than just that. It's why I love him so much, and for the fact he gave me something I wanted so badly from Mike but could never get. Well, two things. Adoration, and this little one' she said, smiling back at her mom whilst resting a hand to her stomach.

'I'm sure I'll learn to love him in my own little way' said Karen as they broke into a gentle jog.

'Just stop having preconceptions and you'll be fine' said Chloe, bouncing neatly over a large piece of tree branch sticking up as they ran the edge of the woods, not noticing that Lauren was 200 yards behind them. She'd once again driven to the house to find both their cars in the driveway, so had parked up further down the road and cut through to the woods to watch the house, running and hiding when she saw Chloe and her mother walk around from the back yard and out towards the woods.

Since she had heard the engine of Shannon's car roar into life she had decided to watch and see what Chloe was doing, all the time imagining and wishing it was herself who was in that position. She knew how she was acting could be easily deemed as crazy, but she loved him and couldn't help her behaviour even when her inner voice shouted 'Lauren King what are you doing?' When they turned the corner that bordered the river that ran through the wood she shot behind a tree fast once again as she saw Chloe turn her head..............

..................'Mom, remember on the phone I told you about Shannon's ex trying to win him back?' she said, her and Karen walking over the bridge that linked one side of the forest to the other over the steep gap the river flowed through.

'Yeah, what makes you mention her sweetie?' she replied, opening her sports cap bottled water with her teeth and taking a few gulps as they reached the other side of the bridge.

'I think she's following us' replied Chloe, as right on cue they heard Lauren suddenly scream and turned to see her come tumbling from her hiding place by the tree, her hands hanging onto everything she could grasp so as not to fall into the river, 15ft below where she hung.

'Shit!' hissed Chloe, running back over the bridge. Even though she hated Lauren for pulling the psycho ex girlfriend stunt at now of all times, all she could think at that moment was that she couldn't leave her hanging there; it'd be more than a few abrasions and bruises if she fell from the side of the high bank.

'Mom hold onto the branch and give me your hand' said Chloe as they both neared the edge of the bank.

'Chloe be careful!' Karen warned, worried in case she slipped and fell, and what that could mean if she hit her stomach.

'Lauren, I don't care right now why the hell you're following me, grab my hand and I'll pull you up' said Chloe, her own hand locked around her mother's tightly as she leant over the edge of the bank offering her other hand to Lauren.

'I can't! I'm too scared to let go!' she wailed, tears of fear forming in her eyes.

'If you don't grab my hand you're gonna fall, and if you hit your head on one of those rocks below the chances are you're gonna die. I'm serious Lauren if you survive the fall you'll be in a lot of pain, now grab my hand! I promise I won't let you go, c'mon grab it now!' she shouted, reaching her hand out even further, as far as she could physically stretch. With what little strength she had left in her arms Lauren heaved herself up a little more holding onto the thorny weeds she had grabbed onto with her left hand, letting go with her right and having Chloe snatch at her hand immediately and then begin to haul her back up the bank with her mother, who let go of the branch and assisted in tugging Lauren back up onto the bank once Chloe had pulled half of her body back over the edge.

'And now I'm taking you back to my house to get you cleaned up and get a strong drink in you. You've had a nasty shock, but as soon as you feel okay again I want answers. Don't think because I was decent enough to save your ass it means you're off the hook. You have a hell of a lot of explaining to do missy' said Chloe, calmly but with a prickle of anger in her tone. Lauren just dropped her head and nodded, walking along back through the woods solemnly by the side of Chloe and her mother, wanting to cry all the way she felt so stupid and pathetic at being caught out playing a game that had begun to make her realize how foolish her actions had been.

'You both sit down and I'll make some drinks' said Karen when they arrived back at the house, with Chloe going into the kitchen cupboard to where she kept a little tin full of her first aid things such as band aids and antiseptic wipes, also removing a pair of tweezers to pull the little thorns from Lauren's bloodied hands.

'Chloe, please! Sit down, you need to rest after all that' Karen continued, steering her daughter into a seat next to Lauren.

'Are-are y-you unwell or something Chloe?' she asked, feeling concern towards the woman she had previously felt nothing but jealous hatred towards.

'No, but I am three and a half months pregnant' she replied, before looking stunned as Lauren immediately burst into tears and covered her face with her torn up hands.

'I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry! What the hell have I been thinking? Chasing my ex boyfriend like some love struck teenager when all the time all you both needed was to be left alone while you wait for your baby to come! Oh god I feel like dirt! The stress I must have caused you, stress you don't need in your condition! Oh god I'm so sorry Chloe, I really am. You must think I need locking up!' she wailed, surprised to be pulled into a hug by someone she had written off as her arch nemesis.

'I understand what it's like to be crazy in love with someone, I really do. I've been there before when I was your age, it's always harder when you're young, before you've learned a lot of life lessons you know doubt will before you get to my age. And I appreciate your apology too, and the fact you realize what you are doing is wrong. If deep down Shannon wasn't such a nice guy he'd have reported you to the police by now, he's only held back because he wanted to see if you'd get bored and just leave him alone' said Chloe, reaching for the tea her mother passed her and then opening the lid on the old tin and pulling out some antiseptic wipes, ripping the corner of the packaging open with her teeth and pulling out the wet white wipe inside to begin cleaning Lauren's hands.

'I can't believe how understanding you're being. And I just feel so guilty for doing what I've done, I really, really do' she said, watching Chloe begin to pick little thorns out of her hands with the fine tipped tweezers, cleaning each little puncture wound as she went along.

'Well as long as you've learned your lesson and realize that no matter how much you love him you have to keep your distance, I think everything will be fine. It's hard to love someone who doesn't love you back; Chloe and I have both been there haven't we honey? But the fact is, you'll do nothing but piss him off even more if you don't back away, and I'm glad you see this' said Karen, Chloe nodding in agreement.

'I do, believe me I really do. I've acted stupidly and I admit that. I mean Christ; you must be having enough trouble with your ex. I sense you're the kind of woman no man would take lightly to losing' said Lauren, with Chloe widening her eyes and pulling a face.

'That's good perception you have there. Yes, he's being difficult, but I guess it's no more than I deserve. Mother stop eyeballing me' said Chloe, turning to Karen and laughing softly. Karen made a 'what?' face that had both her and Lauren giggling within seconds.

'If you don't mind asking, but how long has it been going on for?' she asked after their laughter had subsided.

'Since March, and yes I have to confess you were still with him the first time we ended up in bed, and I do feel genuinely awful for that. And so did he, it was one of the reasons he broke up with you, he felt too guilty to carry on' said Chloe, watching Lauren nod.

'Chloe, I knew I'd lose him to you sooner or later. I saw the way he looked at you, the way he still looks at you. He never looked at me like that and that's because you're the love of his life, and if I cared one once about him as much as I say I do I should have just left him be. Because he's happy with you' said Lauren honestly.

'And not even my rotten shit of an ex husband can ruin that. Believe me, with what he's been throwing at me you're small beans' said Chloe, sighing and taking a gulp of her tea.

'What did he do?' asked Lauren, sounding quite concerned. Chloe thought that alone was quite sweet; like she was changing sides in all this.

'Well when we were married he basically neglected me totally, and now I've had the sense to leave him at last he's digging his heels in over the divorce. He refused to sign the first round of petition papers my lawyer sent out to him, and sent them back each time they sent him another copy. He leaves spiteful messages all the time, if we're out anywhere he likes to stand staring at us in the distance. He's too scared Shannon'll fracture his cheekbone again if he gets any closer than that. But he couldn't give a shit about smacking him one again, you know what he's like, he has zero temper 99% of the time' she said as Lauren nodded.

'You're a lucky girl, he's really something. I was too stupid to see that. Look I'm gonna go, thanks for looking after me' she said, getting up and walking out of the kitchen before Chloe could say anything. And she decided not to say anything either, and just let her walk on out of the house. She sensed they'd said all they needed to say to each other. 


	30. Chapter 30 Henry

Six months later.

'If you get any bigger one of us is gonna have to sleep on the floor! Are you sure there's only one in there?' asked Shannon, rubbing his hand across Chloe's huge stomach affectionately.

'I'm due in six days sweetie, I don't think I'm getting any bigger than this!' laughed Chloe.

'I swear you've got bigger just in the last week, it's like a zeppelin!' he said, followed with 'Ow! Quit it!' when she grabbed him by the mohican and pulled. She hadn't been fond of his choice to cut all his hair off again, but she was slowly getting used to it. He was still the most adorable thing she'd ever seen, and no words could express how much she loved him. The only regret Chloe had was that she hadn't met him years ago, before Mike, before Crystal.

Ah, Mike. He still refused to give her a divorce, even though his verbal abuse had ceased after he figured it was doing nothing to even slightly bother them he still tried to hold that trump card over her. Yet again, it didn't work. The final piece of correspondence she sent him sealed that for him-

_Mike,  
You can refuse to divorce me all you like, but it can't stop me changing my name legally, which is Moore now in case you wondered. You spitefulness won't stop me from having the same surname as my family. Besides, Shannon and I weren't planning on getting married in a rush so waiting until you stop behaving like a child suits us just fine. Honestly, have a good life, because I won't be around to witness it. I'll be too busy enjoying my own, without you in it at long last.  
Ms. C Moore._

Nothing was going to stop her being happy, least of all him. She loved her life, her man, her friends, her horse who still wondered what was going on with the large lump in his mommies' tummy, and her job which she still continued at despite being the size of the following, depending who you asked.

'Baby elephant' – Chad.  
'Zeppelin' – Shannon.  
'Water balloon' – Shane.  
'Mount Kilimanjaro' – Kerry.

It was no underestimation, she was huge. Which was confusing since the estimated birth weight of their son was 7lbs 9oz and she'd hardly put weight on anywhere else except her ass (which Shannon told her she shouldn't be in too much of a hurry to lose since it looked so good). She often joked the baby must have been stashing food down there, and would probably be born clutching a fistful of Oreo's. Her little Henry, she couldn't wait to see him. The name had been Shannon's idea since she had lost her grandfather the previous year, and she'd thought it the perfect idea for their son's name. It took her grandmother about a week to stop crying she was so touched.

'If you're stressed, this is what you gotta do. Baby feet kicking you in the face always works' said G from behind the counter as he sat with Chloe, his head rested on her stomach and his arms rested either side.

'How long have you got to go now? Can't be too long' said one of the girls they were talking to.

'Six days, and I can't wait! I feel like I'm carrying an army backpack with me everywhere, but attached to my stomach! Only get pregnant if you can stand the back ache' said Chloe, laughing at G as Henry really began to give him beats.

'Little rebel, just like your dad. Shit he's really giving it some in there!' exclaimed G as he felt his cheek pounded by little feet.

'Yeah he's saying 'PISS OFF FOOL!' Well, if he's anything like Shan he will be' she said, resting her hands either side of her bump as G sat up and wincing a little as the kicks got more savage.

'Arrrrgh! Dude chill! Mommy wants some insides left!' she said, looking down at where her hands rested.

'Good luck with it, and once again thanks so much for this' said the girl, gesturing the dressing on her shoulder of the tiger Chloe had just tattooed there. After chilling out and having a coffee Chloe left early, wanting to have a quiet walk around the mall and buy a few things for Claire's upcoming 28th birthday. She'd seen a rare vinyl release of 'Cowboys from Hell' by her favourite band Pantera in a record store specializing in rarities so had headed there first. She was just in the middle of a clothes store looking for the pair of jeans her friend had seen and loved before, but couldn't buy since they had none in her size when Chloe felt a sharp pain in her stomach, followed by a shortness of breath.

'Okay this ain't no kicking fit' she thought to herself, pulling the jeans off the rack and taking them to the counter to pay.

'Excuse me, do you mind if I take a seat over there for a minute? I feel a bit out of breath' said Chloe after she had retrieved her credit card from the girl behind the counter.

'Of course, come with me' she replied brightly and gently lead Chloe by the elbow round to the corner facing the other side of the counter where there was a large plush looking decorative chair, matching decadent yet hippy looking decor of the rest of the store. She politely asked the lady sitting on it trying on shoes if she would mind moving, and then offered Chloe a drink once she'd sat down.

'A watch with a second hand would be handier to me right now. I don't want to scare you but I might be going into labour' she said, watching the girls eyes widen a little as she continued to smile.

'Right, here take this. I have to get back behind the register but just gimmie a yell if you need me to call for an ambulance or your other half or anything' she said after removing and donating her watch and then running back behind the cash desk after Chloe had nodded.

'Okay, five minutes so far. You better get to at least nine before I have another' she said, looking at the watch and keeping calm. She wasn't a born worrier and she knew at some point or another she'd probably loose it and succumb to screaming, crying and shouting but saw no point in getting herself worked up this early in; if Henry was about to make an entrance that was.

Five minutes later, and another searing pain hit her. And before she had chance to think about what she should do next, the choice was made for her.

'It's about time I repaid being such a pain in the ass by making myself useful. And my newly trained nurses eye tells me you're going into labour and need a ride to hospital' came the voice of Lauren from behind her, also feeling her hand on her shoulder. 'Past forgotten, I just wanna help you out' she then added as Chloe took her outstretched hands and eased herself up onto her feet.

'And I think I'd be a fool to pass up on that offer. A ride to hospital from a trained professional sounds pretty good to me' said Chloe, walking by her side out of the store and having Lauren usher her outside.

'Okay wait here and I'll be right back. It's a little much to expect you to climb the stairs and too risky to use an elevator that might get stuck so I'll drive down to you' said Lauren, rubbing her arm and smiling before running at quite a speed in her stiletto heeled boots back to the elevator to take her up to where she'd parked her Buick. Chloe was pleased to see the shiny red car pull up and walked over as quickly as she could manage and climb in, Lauren helping her stretch the seatbelt around her bulk before pulling out into the flow of traffic and heading for the hospital.

'How frequent is your pain?' asked Lauren, indicating to turn left as she slowed the car.

'So far I've only had two really sharp ones. But I've had false alarms for the last few weeks and they've been nothing compared to this' Chloe replied, watching Lauren nod.

'Just keep taking deep breaths and try to relax. The more you tense up the more uncomfortable you'll feel. It took the midwife about three hours of hammering that point home when I gave birth, I was so tensed up' she said, then cursed softly when they got stopped by a red light.

'I didn't know you had a child' said Chloe, turning to look at her.

'I don't. She died three hours after she'd been born. Inoperable hole in her heart the poor soul. I was only seventeen at the time and she wasn't planned, but I wanted to keep her all the same, even though when the doctors found it on my scans they said she probably wouldn't survive' said Lauren, shifting the car back into gear and pulling away.

'Oh my lord, that's............that's heartbreaking. I'm so sorry for you' said Chloe, reaching out to gently touch her arm. Lauren looked over and smiled kindly before continuing.

'Ever since then I've had problems losing the things or people I love. After my outrageous behaviour a few months ago I decided to go and seek counselling again and well my therapist stated that that's probably a big part of the reason I acted the way I did. I find it hard to let go' she said, Chloe nodding.

'I understand that something like that could stay with you for a long time, but I can't even imagine how you must have felt, or possibly coped. You're very brave' she said, shaking her head in amazement. It was then that it hit her just how strong Lauren must be, and how much it must have really punched her in the guts to learn of her pregnancy with the man (at the time) she was still in love with. Yet she still had done what she said she would, walked away and let them get on with their lives once she'd realized she was the one in the wrong. Chloe couldn't help but respect her for that, and the kindness she was showing her right at that moment as they drove through the busy streets on the way to the hospital.

'I think I'm a whole lot braver than I give myself credit for. And becoming a nurse has really helped me, it's why I chose midwifery and as soon as I can I'll be starting to train to become one too.  
Obviously it's something close to my heart and it makes perfect sense for it to be my career too. It's therapeutic for me' said Lauren, indicating right to enter the hospital complex. 'Oooooh you having another contraction? Hold my hand' she then added, doing a nice job of driving one handed while Chloe clutched her other tightly.

'You need to get me outta here before my water breaks all over your nice clean seats!' said Chloe, taking a deep breath as Lauren parked up.

'It's no biggie if it does, my new boyfriend is a valet guy so he'll be able to clean it off for me!' she laughed, getting out and locking her door before racing around to help Chloe out. She got her inside and straight up to the maternity suite with no waiting (flashing her security card issued to all hospital staff) and then got her checked in at the desk and a room organised so she could wait comfortably for her doctor to come and check her over.

'Isn't this supposed to be your day off Nurse King?' asked Dr Morris when he entered the room to find Lauren there making Chloe comfortable.

'It was but I had to help, erm...' she paused.

'She wanted to help her friend in need' Chloe finished for her, giving her a little wink as Lauren smiled at being referred to as a friend.

'Well let's check you over then, see if it's a false alarm or if little Henry is about to make an appearance!' said her Doctor. After a ten minute check over it was deemed Henry really was on his way, so Lauren stepped outside the room and called Shannon to let him know. It was quite a shock to hear, firstly because Chloe wasn't due for another six days and secondly because Lauren was the last person he expected to hear that news from. But he thanked her warmly for getting Chloe there all the same, and after yelling 'I GOTTA GO! MY BOY'S ON HIS WAY OUT LIKE NOW!' as he ran across the shop and through the front doors he was on his way.

'He's on his way so I'll leave you to it. If I stay any longer they'll only rope me into doing some work!' said Lauren as she came back into the room.

'Thank you, you didn't have to do what you did for me' Chloe replied, smiling up at her.

'Neither did you when you pulled be back over that bank; you could have just left me there. But I think it takes certain situations to really see what's important in life. Good luck, oh and blaming the man who got you in this situation in the first place is a wonderful way to get through it, worked for me! I hope the three of you'll be very happy, and I might see you around before you go home, but if not I wish you the best for everything' said Lauren, laying a little kiss on the side of Chloe's head, giving her bump an affectionate stroke and then turning to leave.

'Lauren?' she said, making her stop and turn back at the door.

'Yes?' she replied.

'You're an angel' said Chloe, blowing her a little kiss Lauren comically pretended to catch against her cheek.

'No worries, bye sweetie' she said, waving and then leaving the room. She only had to wait for twenty minutes before the door opened again and Shannon came in.

'I called Claire and she's gonna bring your stuff up soon with Jeff. How are my babies doing then?' he asked, sitting on the edge of the bed and kissing her.

'Not bad so far, the midwife is coming in to check over us soon but they think it's going to be a slow labour since my contractions are so far apart. Ooooh speak of the devil' she said, wincing as she clutched her stomach, Shannon pressing his hands over the top of hers.

'C'mon Henry, be a good boy for mom' he joked, kissing her huge belly and laughing a little.

'I don't think there's much chance of that over the next however many hours! He's gonna put mom through the mill but it'll be worth it, I think' she replied.

'I'll remind you of that when he hits thirteen and refuses to do what either of us says' he said with a smile. Shortly after the midwife came in to check her over and see how the labour was progressing, which was still very slowly. And so Chloe sat back and prepared for the long wait ahead of her, doing fine for the first two hours until the pain really began to kick in; and then she was terrified and sat in Shannon's arms having a bit of a cry.

'Baby, can you get my mom in for a bit please? It's not that I don't want you here but I just really need her right now' said Chloe, before groaning again as another contraction gripped her.

'Okay, I'll go get her when you've finished sinking your claws into my shoulder' he said, making her raise a little smile through her tears. And so once her contractions had calmed down again he went out into the waiting room to fetch Karen, and then got himself ushered outside by Hank.

'I know you quit son, but you look like you need one' he said to Shannon, handing him a cigarette he gratefully accepted.

'Thanks, it's hard to see someone you love so much going through so much pain isn't it?' said Shannon as he lit up from the flame his 'father in law' provided.

'It is, you got that feeling of being completely helpless yet?' asked Hank, putting his lighter back into his pocket.

'It kicked in about an hour ago' said Shannon, running a hand over his hair and returning his cap to his head in its usual backwards fashion. Hank just laughed gently and patted him on the shoulder, hoping he wasn't feeling as freaked out as he had when Chloe was born thirty four years ago. They went back into the hospital and it was another forty minutes before Karen resurfaced; telling Shannon Chloe wanted him there to shout at.

'Okay, hit me with the 'I'm never letting you near me again you vile asshole' line, I can take it' he said, sitting on the edge of the bed and holding her hand.

'I was only joking, I have to think of ways to keep myself amused through all this and...............SHIT THAT FUCKING HURT SO FUCKING MUCH!' she said, the pain becoming too bad for her to finish her sentence. Ten minutes later she finally gave in and decided on an epidural to see her through the rest of the birth, which had to be topped up another two times since her labour stretched on long into the night. And by the end of it even though she couldn't feel the intense pain she was exhausted, but relieved when she first hear Henry draw breath and cry at exactly 2.30am.

'Awwww man look at him! He's so gorgeous' said Shannon, looking down to where a heavily drugged up Chloe held Henry in her arms, all wrapped in blankets after he'd been weighed.

'Because he looks just like you' she said, turning her head and kissing him, feeling tears well in her eyes when she saw he was crying with happiness.

'Henry, this is your dad and I think he'd like to have a cuddle while mommy asks the nice nurse if she would mind fetching her a drink' she said to her tiny son, carefully passing him to his daddy while the nurse asked her what she'd like.

'Hey champ' he said, kissing his little pink head and feeling absolutely amazed. He couldn't put his finger on just how he felt at holding his first child, but he knew from that moment on he was the number one person in his life next to Chloe; there wasn't a single thing he wouldn't do for either of them. And it just went to show that sometimes playing with fire did get you burned, but in this case it got two people something beautiful; a family of three. Shannon, Chloe and Henry Moore.

The End.

**A huge thank you to each and every person who read and reviewed this story, I loved writing it and loved to see it was so well enjoyed! You guys make all the difference, you really do! Of course there is more work to me in the coming, if you haven't read my fic 'The Dream' yet please do! **


End file.
